Zelda Heroes
by Negetive2digit
Summary: Four points of view, four teams, one evil that lurks in the shadows. Team Link, Team Shadows, Team Eye, Team Lon...where will their paths collide and just how will they stop the new threat to the world? Inspired by Sonic Heroes, this is an epic tale.
1. Team Shadows Level 1

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Oh, where to begin...listening to Sonic music and being reminded of LoZ: MM was the beginning of all this. I decided that I would write the outline of an all-but-rip-off of Shadow the Hedgehog, starring Link's alter ego. I had already constructed an idea for a LoZ: OoT RPG and, thinking of Sonic Heroes, I made a prequel to my all-but-rip-off and came up with Zelda Heroes. Warning: characters may be a little (or a lot) OOC, due to the nature of this kind of story and some references will be made to prequels that aren't written or even planned out (not that you need to get some unwritten story to enjoy this one, of course). This isn't really a cross-over, per se, but some elements from Sonic games will be used (that should be obvious). I own neither the Zelda or Sonic series, but that won't stop me from writing an interesting story.

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Noon of the First Day

Vaati chuckled to himself as he flew to the ancient mausoleum in the most remote reaches of Termina. This barren, rocky area was somewhere betwixt Ikana and Snowhead, this tomb the only defining feature of the area, sticking out like a sore thumb. The wind sorcerer had felt some odd vibes in the area recently and had done extensive research of ancient scriptures. Something was sealed here, something of great power, and he was determined to get it. Getting in was a cinch, as there was a large hole in the roof. He landed inside, his footsteps echoing in the empty room. Looking around, he quickly spotted a large door at the far side of the room. He approached it cautiously, reading the inscription aloud.

_If so ye wish to open this door_

_Prove, own ye, the elements four_

Vaati chuckled as he pulled out the four sacred jewels. Finding them had been difficult, as Link, Lucius, and Kafei were hunting earnestly for them at present, but he hoped that the thing behind this door would be worth losing them. The jewels flew into formation, each opposite their counterparts, and radiated their power to the door, shattering and forming elsewhere in the world as the door opened slowly.

A weighty boot stepped heavily on a rock outcropping near the crypt, its owner sneering with glee at the sight. His search was over.

Vaati walked slowly into the dark room, his cape swishing behind him, approaching the transparent, crystalline vault that was in the center of the room. Suddenly, the torches around the room's perimeter ignited and the wind mage jumped back in shock. Not by the sudden light was he startled so, but by who was in the crystal vault. A man, not a day over 19, wearing a red tunic and medium-blue boots and gloves, wearing a two-handed sword with red and purple sheath and medium-blue hilt, with unkempt periwinkle hair, appeared to be fast asleep within.

"Knil!" Vaati exclaimed. He knew he saw him fall from the Tower of the Winds to his death on that day, years ago. Acting quickly, the wind mage set about incanting the spell to break the seal. Wind swirled around the chamber, making the torches flicker, as the crystal cracked and-BOOM! A blast of magic exploded nearby.

"Not so fast!" the originator of the attack demanded, hand still outstretched. It was Ganondorf, King of Thieves and Dark Sorcerer. "I'll be taking him back with me!" Knil's crimson eyes shot open at this moment and he burst out the crystal, sending shards everywhere, as he launched himself at Ganondorf. He jumped backwards, performing a handspring, and blocking Knil's strike with his claymore. He laughed derisively. "Is that the best you can do?" They launched themselves away from one another and both charged magic blasts in their hands, firing them at each other and causing an explosion that demolished part of the room. They rushed at each other again, but Vaati jumped in this time, somehow managing to put a hand to each and stop them without getting skewered.

"Time out, here!" the wind mage shouted. Surprisingly, both combatants backed down, though Ganondorf still looked miffed and Knil turned away crossing his arms with a huff. "Now," Vaati breathed a sigh of relief. "Ganondorf, you're still angry with Link and his comrades for defeating you," Ganondorf gave an angry nod. "And you," he turned to Knil. "You can't even remember anything after your last adventure with Link," The alter ego gave no reply or acknowledgment. "So why don't we make up and work for a common goal!" He grabbed Ganondorf's hand and Knil's hand and put one on top of the other before putting his own hand on top. "Go, Team Shadows!" The other two gave him a coldly inquiring look and backed away from one another rather quickly.

"So…now what?" Ganondorf asked unhappily.

"The sacred jewels," Vaati replied. "If we find them, we'll be able to take down Link's team no problem.

"The sacred jewels…" Knil repeated quietly. "That sounds familiar to me,"

"Well, then, let's go!" Vaati flew out of the hole in the roof. Ganondorf have an evil chuckle and followed suit. Knil gave a humph and jumped after them.

Level 1

"Ahh, this wasteland is the perfect place to practice our techniques!" Vaati stated, looking around at the rugged terrain that surrounded the crypt and the impassable terrain beyond.

"Practice…" Knil scoffed. "We need to find the jewels, not goof around,"

"As much as I hate to agree with wind boy, you're bound to be rusty after your captivity," Ganondorf replied. "Besides, there are more monsters as of late, it's not like it'll be out of the way," Knil humphed and took the lead, setting off into the mountainous area. Despite being the only one in the group that couldn't fly, he made surprisingly well headway as he kicked aside octoroks and smashed down boulders that got in his way with his magic blasts.

"He's quite powerful…" Vaati commented.

"Why else would I have wanted to claim him for myself?" Ganondorf replied. "He is the ultimate tool of destruction,"

The group continued until they were close to Termina Field. Day was waning and Knil was well back in form from the trip.

"Finally, we're out of these blasted mountains!" Ganondorf grumbled. Knil stopped dead in his tracks, suddenly. Vaati and Ganondorf continued and were about to pass him when he put his sword out to stop them.

"Something's decided to give us a little welcoming party," he deduced before they could ask. The ground began to shake and the foothold abruptly gave way as a giant Cyclops burst out of the rocks. All three jumped away and took defensive positions as the brute raged around, smashing everything near him. Vaati chuckled and floated into the air a little.

"The earth is no match for wind. I'll take the lead," He flew over to the monster and started shooting blasts of wind magic at it. Naturally, it was annoyed and batted him back a ways. The wind mage turned head-over-heels for a while before righting himself in time to dodge a boulder that the giant hurled at him. It picked up another boulder to hurl, but suddenly stumbled as Ganondorf delivered a Warlock Punch to its leg. It attempted to punch him, but Knil jumped up on its arm and ran for its head. The Cyclops tried to hit him but only succeeded in hurting its arm. Knil jumped up and drove his sword into the monster's eye. It let out a horrible roar of agony and started flailing around as Knil attempted to wrench out his sword, but to no avail.

"Take this!" Vaati launched a salvo of wind spells that hurt the Cyclops severely as Ganondorf charged up a Black Hole attack. Knil finally wrenched his sword free and jumped away.

"Ultimate darkness, consume all!" Ganondorf shouted, throwing the huge sphere of energy at the monster, causing a huge explosion on impact. The Cyclops stood there, motionless, burnt all over, and then it fell with a monstrous thud that was felt all the way in Clock Town.

The group entered Termina Field, at last, around 17:00. Needless to say, they'd had enough action for one day.

"We should go to town and find board for the night," Vaati suggested. Knil gave a noncommittal humph and Ganondorf grudgingly nodded, both too stubborn to admit they were even the least bit tired, even if they would keel over any minute. So they set off at a brisk pace for Clock Town. Fortunately, they didn't run into any Bombachus or Dodongos as they made their way to the north gate.

"Sorry, with the numerous monster influxes lately, we aren't allowing any suspicious travelers inside at this time," the guard informed them as they tried to pass through the gate.

"Look here, we just went through hell and I'll be cursed if I'm gonna spend the night outside!" Ganondorf raged, dark energy surging around him. The guard looked quite frightened, but he pointed his shaking spear forward and attempted to sound authoritive, needless to say, his voice was closer to a shriek than anything authoritive.

"I-I'll have to ask Captain Viscen! Please wait here!" he ran off and another guard took his place, though this guard looked even more frightened than the one that just ran off.

"Why are we even bothering with this?" Ganondorf growled to Vaati and Knil. "We could take their entire force if we wanted,"

"We best avoid starting trouble if we want to get a peaceful night," Vaati replied.

"I don't need a peaceful night," Knil said quietly. "I only want to find the jewels,"

"Hey!" a trio of warriors ran up. The speaker was a man in a helmet with a sword. "It _is_ you!"

"So you've reawakened Knil and are planning something, then?" the scholarly-looking man with glasses and a book asked.

"We won't let you bring your evil schemes in here, yeah?" the armored woman in red pants declared, getting out her bow. Knil humphed and dodged her arrow easily.

"So you want to play?" he asked flatly, pulling out his sword.

The fight began quickly after that. The guard fled as Knil and the helmeted guy clashed weapons with rapid succession. The man jumped up onto the ridge by the fairy fountain and Knil followed, firing a salvo of dark energy blasts and creating a series of explosions that momentarily blinded his opponent. He used the opening and kicked the man in the face, sending him sprawling backwards, but he recovered with a handspring and slid to a stop in time to block a series of slashes from Knil. Meanwhile, the scholarly guy and Vaati were trading spells over by the slide. One suddenly caught it and it burst into splinters that they had to leap away to avoid. Ganondorf suddenly jumped in and blindsided the scholarly man, sending him spinning into a wall and knocking him out. The armored woman quickly retaliated with a hail of arrows that pinned Vaati to the wall and interfered with his powers.

"Blast!" he exclaimed, struggling against his bonds. She fired a shimmering arrow, coated in light energy, at Ganondorf, but he dodged it and stomped the ground with such force that it caused a miniature earthquake and knocked her down. He jumped up and attempted to perform a dropping Warlock Punch on her but she rolled out of the way at the last second and kicked him in the stomach before firing a light arrow into his face and sending him spiraling away. He smashed into the ground where she'd been a couple of seconds ago as she took a position to aim at Knil.

Knil locked blades with the helmeted man and sent a blast of energy into his face, causing him to smash into a wall, KO'd. A sudden arrow flew past Knil's face, he dodged it instinctively. He gave a glance at his remaining adversary as she fired arrow after arrow at him. He jumped and dodged around the projectiles, slowly making his way towards her. Suddenly, though, Vaati broke free of her arrows and fired a salvo of wind spells at her while she was diverted by Knil. Caught up in the winds, she couldn't get away as Vaati turned them to a miniature tornado and cut her with wind blades several times before hurtling her into the same wall as the scholarly guy and knocking her comatose as well as she fell on top of said scholarly guy.

"Too easy," Knil scoffed as he and Vaati went over to check on Ganondorf.

"I wouldn't say that. We cut it close," Vaati disagreed, examining their muscular comrade's wounds. "He should be fine in about a day or two, but it would be helpful if we had some medicine…"

"Check these guys," Knil suggested with an air of not caring one way or the other. A quick frisk of the enemy team yielded a blue potion, which they promptly forced the Gerudo man to swallow. His wounds patched up immediately and he sat up with a groan, putting a hand to his head.

"Blasted woman!" he growled. "What is someone like her doing with light arrows?"

"Save your inquiries for later," Vaati replied, listening intently to the sounds of approaching guards. "It sounds as if the town guard has been raised,"

"Yet more fodder to destroy," Knil said nonchalantly, getting out his sword.

"No! We're not here to fight with every blasted warrior in town, meatheads!" Vaati snapped, his cool demeanor fraying at the edges a little. "Let's hide and find a way to sneak into a place to rest," Knil humphed.

"Fine, but I'll start a fight at the very first pretext, come tomorrow," Ganondorf declared darkly.

The group watched the guards running around below, scouring the area for any sign of them and checking on the other team, from the safety of the rooftops. Quietly, they made their way into East Clock Town until they came to a veranda on the second floor of a building. It was partially fenced in and had a bell within it, for some odd reason. Figuring this place had a spare room or two, they let themselves in the nearby door and came out in a hallway with some stairs to the right. Quietly, they turned left and looked down the hall. No one was around. Looking at the first door in front of them, they quickly eliminated it, due to the "employees only" sign. The second door was locked but, after pressing an ear to the door, Vaati deduced that it was empty.

"Great, now how do we get in?" Ganondorf grumbled.

"Simple," Vaati held out his hand to the lock and manipulated the air inside to turn the mechanisms. The door opened with a click and they walked inside, shutting the door behind them and re-locking it.

"What if someone else rents the room?" Ganondorf asked. "I don't want to be rudely awakened,"

"Well, we'll cross that bridge if we come to it," Vaati replied with a shrug. Knil gave a humph and sat down against a wall. They all looked out the window as a wolf howled somewhere, signaling nightfall.

**Night of the First Day**

"Well, best get to sleep," he took one of the twin beds. Ganondorf, not knowing what else to do, took the other.

**Dawn of the Second Day**

A rooster crowed the next day at 06:00. Vaati awakened with a yawn and looked at his other two comrades. Ganondorf was still snoring like a bear, sprawled out and mouth wide, and Knil was still sitting as he had been the night before, slumped against the wall and staring at the floor contemplatively. Stretching, the wind mage retrieved his dark blue hat and put it on.

"Wake up, Ganondorf," Vaati said, jostling him with his hand and narrowly avoiding the punch that was forthcoming in reply.

"Where's breakfast?" the Gerudo asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"You're welcome to ask the innkeeper for some," Knil suggested scathingly. Ganondorf glared at him.

"We'll get some once we've left this inn," Vaati reassured them. "Now come on, we must sneak out before the innkeeper comes by,"

After creeping out through the door they'd come in through the previous day, Vaati inhaled the morning air as Knil looked around for guards.

"So, where are we going to get breakfast?" Ganondorf asked, a bit impatiently.

"Well…" he spotted a restaurant nearby. "Let's go there," He jumped down from the roof and walked boldly over. The other two quickly got over the minor shock and followed. The cashier was none to happy to see the three intimidating villains come into the establishment, but decided that he'd might as well try to be polite.

"M-May I help you, sirs?" he asked as the imposing-looking desert man examined the menu.

"Hmm…I believe I'll have the pancakes with deku syrup," Vaati said.

"Get me a dozen chuberry muffins," Ganondorf added gruffly.

"Egg and bacon biscuit meal," Knil added shortly, arms crossed and looking none too happy.

"Th-that'll be 90 rupees and your meals will b-be ready in a few minutes," the cashier stuttered. Vaati took out his change purse and counted out four red rupees and one blue one. The trio sat down at a nearby table, somehow without Ganondorf crushing one of the chairs.

"So where are we going today?" he asked, since it wasn't his adventure or anything and he had no idea why he was there…oh, yeah, to beat up Link and friends.

"I sense a jewel in the south," Knil piped up quietly. "We should head there,"

"H-Here's your food," the waiter put down their meals and cups of juice before retreating to the kitchen with more than due haste.

After their meals, they left the restaurant and headed down the street, watchful for guards, until they reached South Clock Town. There was no carnival on anytime soon, so the area was, mostly, vacant, but the clock tower was still there in all its glory and it chimed the half-hour of seven as they entered the area.

"Whoa! Those guys are scary!" one little boy in a cap exclaimed to another kid dressed in a similar fashion.

"Let's vamoose!" the other kid agreed and they fled. This drew the attention of the two guards at the south gate.

"Hey!" one of them shouted. "Captain Viscen has put out a warrant on you three!"

"Big deal!" Ganondorf retorted, taking a defensive pose. "You best leave off and let us by or there'll be trouble!" The guards charged forward with their spears but Ganondorf easily dodged them and gave them each a blow to the head that knocked them out.

"Let's go before the rest of the town guard shows up," Vaati sighed. However did he get stuck with two guys that thought with their muscles? Oh, yeah, he forced them to be his allies.

Striding out the south gate, they made their way towards the south, easily splattering chuchus aside en route.

"To Southern Swamp: Straight Ahead ," Vaati read a sign to their left as they came to a path through a forest.

"A swamp," Ganondorf grumbled. "Just what I need,"

"Afraid of a little slime?" Knil mocked quietly.

"Silence!" the Gerudo king barked.

"Now, now…" Vaati stepped between them. Anything but calmed down, they continued down the path, smashing more chuchus into unidentifiable goop and watching Vaati blow a nest of evil bats out of the tree in the middle of the path. Finally, they came out to the swamp, the stench, which, until now, had just been lingering in the background, hit them full force.

"What's this place?" Ganondorf pointed to the building on stilts that was in front of them. Vaati flew up to the wooden shelf that surrounded the building and read the sign.

"It's a camera shop," he replied, turning to them as they made their way up and stood by him. "There's also a boat tour service here,"

"Hmm, so we can go deeper into the swamp from here. How fun," Knil commented flatly. "But the jewel is deep in the swamp, we'll need to ask the locals about it,"

"In we go, then," Ganondorf said with no enthusiasm.

The inside of the camera shop was occupied by a fat, hairy guy behind the counter to their left and an old hag, who was asleep at the moment, inside a booth to their right and forward.

"Oh, hello! Are you here for the photo competition?" the hairy guy asked, straightening his goggles and headgear.

"Oh, no, we're looking for a place that might house a sacred relic or something of that sort," Vaati asked.

"You're the second group today that's after that sorta thing," the camera guy replied. "A guy in green, a mage in gray, and a man in purple already came by about half an hour ago and took the boat to Woodfall,"

"Green!" Ganondorf repeated. "That must have been Link!"

"Then he too is after the jewels…" Knil muttered, going over to the old hag. "Hag! Wake up! We need a boat!"

"Huh?" she sat up and immediately saw Ganondorf. "You! It's been forever! Why don't you ever write? Kotake and I are always so worried about you. Are you eating enough? Do you change your underwear every d-"

"Mother! We can discuss this another time!" Ganondorf snapped. "We're on a hunt for sacred treasure right now!"

"Fine…" Koume grumbled. "Ten rupees to get to Deku Palace, capital of Woodfall," Vaati fished out the money and handed it over. "Okay, then. Come outside," She hopped on her broom and flew out the window. The other three exited through the door and saw the old hag dragging a rather large canoe out from under the shop. "All aboard!"

"Is it really even necessary to take a boat?" Ganondorf complained, sick of his mother's scolding, as the boat coasted across the water.

"Well, Knil can't fly and we don't know the area very well so it's safer this way," Vaati explained.

"Pay attention to me!" Koume yelled. "As I was saying-" She was so busy complaining that she smashed into the wall of the tunnel they were going into and fell into the water. They breathed a sigh of relief, except Knil, he just gave a humph, as usual. The boat kept coasting by itself, bringing up the question of why Koume had to accompany it at all, and finally stopped at the dock in front of a wall that led to the Deku Palace.

The Dekus, most likely, thought their palace to be grandiose and large, but the trio of misfit villains ignored it as they looked around for some sign of the jewel.

"Do we have to look for a glow or a sign or something of that sort?" Ganondorf asked, looking around.

"No…the sacred jewels don't make themselves obvious so easily," Vaati replied. "It's the only way they can be used as sparingly as possible and preserve the powers of nature,"

"Hmm…" Knil walked over and looked in the water.

"Don't tell me it's down there," Ganondorf warned.

"It seems like it is," Knil replied softly.

"I just told you not to tell me that!" Ganondorf snapped.

"Calm down, I can simply siphon the waters away with a whirlwind," Vaati informed them. He extended his arms and the air currents started to swirl around in the vicinity and soon a mighty whirlwind was formed. The funnel slowly lowered itself into the water and began blowing it away. Unfortunately, it was also starting to tear the Deku Palace apart and blow the dekus away. Their shrill screams could scarcely be heard over the winds, though, and Vaati continued to expand the whirlwind so that they could see the bottom of the pond. Finally, a shaft of green light shined through the gale and blinded all nearby with its brilliance. Vaati slowed the currents down but kept the water back with an air barrier. "Go fetch it, Ganondorf,"

"Riiight…" he slowly drifted over to the shining stone, not really wanting to go anywhere near the muck and scum of the swamp. He picked it up carefully and held it up to look at it. "Yes, this is definitely a sacred-" He was suddenly engulfed in an explosion and the jewel went flying into what was left of the Deku Palace. Vaati released his spell as he and Knil spun to look at the ridge above.

"You're not getting your hands on the jewels this time, Ganondorf!" Lucius shouted. Blond, with keen, red eyes and bearing a staff of wood, he looked down on the villains. "Vaati…and Knil too?"

"Oh, great!" Link came running up with his sword and shield in hand. "He has backup this time,"

"No matter the odds, light will never lose to darkness," Kafei came walking up as well with his twin knives drawn.

"Link!" Ganondorf shouted, brandishing a fist. "I won't be defeated again!"

"That's what you said the last 20 times!" Link retorted, causing his nemesis to growl in frustration.

"Regardless of how powerful you think you are, we will still take the day and this stone," Knil challenged in his soft, menacing voice.

"Knil? How did you get out?" Link asked, surprised.

"Isn't it obvious? They broke his seal and now they're looking for the jewels," Lucius deduced. An explosion engulfed the ledge they were standing on and they were hidden behind a veil of smoke and dust, but they quickly jumped free and Lucius rained several fire spells down on Ganondorf in retaliation. The Gerudo King flew back quickly to avoid them as Vaati fired several wind spells at Kafei, who was running at him deftly and sidestepping every spell. Link attempted a downward thrust on Knil but he fired a blast of magic at his face and sent him flying head-over-heels through the air. Kafei quickly flipped over Vaati at this point and kicked him in the back of the head, sending him reeling forward, before attacking Knil in a flurry of slashes and stabs. Knil blocked and dodged most of them, only suffering a few minor cuts and nicks before performing a pivoting leap over the thief's head and performing a downward cut that Kafei only managed to dodge enough for it to just leave a painful cut down one side of his back, rather than a potentially lethal one.

Ganondorf, meanwhile, was trading spells with Lucius in the ruins of the Deku Palace. Fire and Ice exploded in midair and darkness and light burst parts of the scenery asunder as their deadly dance continued.

"Black Hole!" Ganondorf split the attack into six blasts for increased accuracy as he launched it at Lucius.

"Divine Lightning!" Lucius raised his staff and the lightning of judgment came crashing down from the heavens, cutting through Ganondorf's spell and destroying the rest of the palace on impact. Lucius peered through the smoke and saw no signs of movement.

Knil rolled around Kafei's swift attack and grabbed him by the leg, swinging him around 720 degrees before hurling him at Lucius as he looked to see if Ganondorf had survived the divine lightning. Both the mage and thief went flying into the swamp with an unpleasant splat.

Vaati chuckled as Link tried to hit him, but the wind mage was at home in the air and Link's jumping spin attacks just weren't accurate enough. Finally, the hero jumped back and sprang off of a wall, Vaati put up an air shield as saw the attack rushing at him, but Link was one step ahead, smashing the shield with his own shield before cutting through Vaati and landing behind him. The wind mage collapsed in a heap.

"Looks like its you and me, huh, Knil?" Link said cockily.

"Humph, don't count your cuccos yet, green boy," Knil scoffed, taking his blade in hands.

The two started off with standard fierce swings of their swords. Link held an advantage in the field of blocking, having a shield, but Knil attacked a lot faster. The two fenced in circles as neither could break the other's guard. Knil flipped backwards and fired a salvo of energy blasts at his opponent, who just blocked them with his mirror shield and rushed forward in an aggressive assault. Knil walked slowly backwards as he deflected the harsh blows.

"What's wrong, Knil? Can't keep up?" Link taunted as Knil was backed to the edge of the dry land. He gave an evil grin. Before Link could figure out what he was on about, the alter ego's body glowed silver and a large explosion sent him smashing into the nearby rock face. He slid down into a sitting position and rubbed his head with a grimace. "What the heck was that?" The dust cleared and Knil was still standing, a little scuffed-looking but, otherwise, fine. Link got back to his feet. "Not a bad trick, but its time to end this!" They were interrupted by someone bursting out of the rubble of the palace, holding aloft the shining, green stone.

"I have it!" Ganondorf announced. "Now," he looked at Link. "You will know defeat!" Link glanced over to where his comrades were lying in the mud.

_Oh, crud…this just isn't my day! _He thought bitterly. "You guys got the drop on us, today, but we'll catch up!" He ran and jumped over to his comrades and hurriedly scooped them up before jumping back up to the ledge they'd appeared on earlier and passing out of sight.

"That's right! Run, Hero! Run!" Ganondorf gloated, spinning around in the air and laughing. Knil wasn't so happy.

"Coward…" he muttered before going to check on Vaati. "Hmm…" Ganondorf took interest after a moment and came over as well.

"He looks like he's injured almost fatally," the Gerudo commented. "We need to get him medicine," Knil thought for a moment.

"Didn't your mother mention that your other mother runs a potion shop in this swamp?" Knil asked.

"I wasn't paying attention to her ranting," Ganondorf grumbled.

_Like mother, like son, I suppose. _Knil thought sourly. "Let's just get him over there,"

They took the boat back and paid another ten rupees to take it to the dock in front of the path that led to the potion shop. Ganondorf was carrying Vaati, so Knil took it upon himself to easily kill the deku babas that dared attempt to impede their progress. Finally, they came to the stilted platform, upon which sat a building that was shaped like a pot. Ganondorf shuddered inwardly about meeting his other mother but their was little to be done. He floated up to the platform while Knil quickly scaled the ladder. As they headed inside, they didn't notice the figure in green hide behind a nearby tree.

"Ganondorf!" Kotake, the old ice hag, exclaimed as he walked in. "I heard from Koume about you! How could you be so rude to your mother?"

"Look, old hag, we need a potion, now," Knil said dangerously.

"Fine, fine…" Kotake relented hesitantly. "He looks pretty banged up so you need a blue potion, 60 rupees," Knil fished out Vaati's change purse, noticing that it was getting light, despite the rupees they found during their travels. He fished out three yellow rupees, five blue ones, and five green ones and forked them over. Kotake handed them a vial of blue potion. They poured it down his throat, somehow, and he was instantly better.

"Oh…" he sat up from the hammock that Ganondorf had put him on for the administration of the medicine. "I cut it close, didn't I?"

"Several organs damaged and severe bleeding, I would say so," Ganondorf replied gruffly. Vaati got up and went to Kotake.

"Thank you, ma'am, your potions have saved us twice, already,"

"Well, you're welcome, young man," the old hag replied. "It's been a while since anyone thanked me for saving their lives, why, back in my day-"

"Yes, yes," Ganondorf started ushering Vaati towards the door, Knil needed no such treatment and wouldn't suffer it. "It was nice seeing you, mother,"

"You ingrate! I'd ground you if-" her words were cut off as the door shut behind them.

"Why do you hate your mother so?" Vaati asked.

"If you'd been around them for years, you'd know," Ganondorf replied shortly. "We've got the jewel, so let's get out of this goddess-forsaken swamp before-" A wolf howled in the distance as the clock tower chimed 18:00.

**Night of the Second Day**

"I guess we'll have to camp out here," Vaati suggested.

"I hate you," Ganondorf replied moodily. They retreated some paces from the shop and the Gerudo started a magical fire, a skill he'd perfected in the desert. Knil immediately flopped on the ground and stared at the sky contemplatively, unheeding of the dirt and stench (one could never be sure if he actually slept or not). Ganondorf, still grumbling, wrapped himself in his frayed cape and tried to get comfortable in the damp dirt. Vaati nodded off sitting up, after a while, and none of them noticed a figure in green sneak up to the shop, outside the fire's light radius, and go in before minutes before closing. A minute later, he left with two vials of potion and slipped off into the night…

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**Funny, I'm not even aiming for humor but getting it anyway. Maybe I really am predisposed towards comedy...anyway, remember to give feedback so I know how I'm doing. And, about the trio that they fought in Clock Town, I guess you could say they're some kind of equivalents of their TP versions, or maybe there's some kind of weird splice thing going on between games...(sigh) this is what happens when I don't write backstory... Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	2. Team Shadows Level 2

**The epic continues. It's a little hard to work with simultaneous story-lines, but the real problem will come when its time for the next side of the story. I own nothing but the OCs and who knows if they aren't subconsciously based off something (mwa, ha, ha...)**

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Level 2

**Dawn of the Third Day**

A rooster crowed as the clock tower tolled the hour of 06:00. Vaati roused himself, as he always did, at dawn, but, surprisingly, Ganondorf was already up and complaining about only having one meal the previous day and having to sleep in a dirty swamp and being covered in mosquito bites. Apparently, they came out around 20:00 every night and, obviously, liked Gerudo blood more than Hylian and Minish. Knil, as usual, was still in the same place, staring at the sky and, for all anybody knew, contemplating the mysteries of the universe.

"-I'm never spending the night in a swamp again," Ganondorf continued his rant.

"Well, let's get moving, then," Vaati said, stretching. "I believe we may reach Clock Town by noon if we hurry," Knil, who had been tuning out Ganondorf for a while now, sprang to his feet.

They made their way back to the boat and boarded, riding it back to the camera shop/boat tour shop.

"Good morning, Ganondorf," Koume cackled, seeing the mosquito bites all over him. "Maybe if you'd just stayed with Kotake at the shop, you would have had that problem," The Gerudo King blatantly ignored the old hag.

"Hmm…" Knil looked around at the trees as Ganondorf vented his annoyance on the chuchus on the path.

"What is it, Knil? Do you sense another jewel?" Vaati asked.

"Yes," Knil replied. "It is somewhere northwest of here,"

"Great," Ganondorf retorted, blowing up the tree where the evil bats had foolishly taken back up residence. "But we're getting food before that, no argument," He held up a glowing fist for emphasis.

As Vaati had predicted, they arrived at Clock Town's South Gate at 11:36. The guards, of course, tried to stop them, but the ill-tempered Ganondorf punched them out again and then they fled to the roofs before anybody else could try to waylay them.

"It may be difficult to procure food and provisions with this mob around," Vaati observed, looking down at the guards looking around for them.

"No, really?" Ganondorf retorted, his stomach growling like a wolfos.

"Why can't we just smash them? These men are weak," Knil muttered, arms crossed.

"If we fight unnecessarily, we will only find it harder to get what we need," Vaati explained. "Right now, people are scared of us but not overtly against us. If we start thrashing their defenders, the citizens will turn the cold shoulder," Ganondorf grumbled and turned away, having no reply. Knil humphed. "Now, let's go over to the west side of town, I believe the shops are over there,"

The clock chimed noon as they jumped down in front of the Trading Post. "This is a nice, all-purpose store," Vaati commented.

"Yeah, yeah," Ganondorf said dismissively. "Let's just get inside before a guard comes by,"

"Like, welcome, dudes," the surfer-looking guy said as they walked in. "What can I get ya, bra?"

"Do you have standard provisions?" Vaati asked.

"Uh, yeah, sure, dudes," the guy pulled out a backpack with a week's worth of food and three canteens of water in it. "100 rupees for the lot, bra," Vaati fished out what remained of his money and handed it over, it was mostly small rupees anyway. "Thank you and, like, come again, dig?"

They looked up and down the street for guards before heading for the west gate.

"I'm still hungry!" Ganondorf barked.

"We'll eat outside of town," Vaati replied. "This isn't the best place for us to linger in,"

"Hey, you!" the gate guards had just seen them and started ringing bells that they carried. Knil kicked one in the stomach, after batting his spear aside, while Vaati blew the other into a wall. They then hightailed it out of town and towards the beach area past the fountains by the path.

"Okay, I think this is far enough," Vaati said as they stopped. "Now for some food…" He fished out a small loaf of bread and some jerky. He split it into three pieces and distributed it.

"This isn't enough to keep me going for an hour, even!" Ganondorf protested, after wolfing it down.

"At least it's something," Vaati replied. "Now, Knil, where's the jewel?" Knil finished off his food calmly and looked towards the beach.

"It must be this way," he replied.

"I smell salt-water," Ganondorf added. "This must lead to an ocean,"

"Well, it _is_ a beach," Knil scoffed.

"I know that!" Ganondorf retorted, clenching a glowing fist in front of him.

"Now let's not kill each other," Vaati refereed. "Let's just go," Knil humphed and Ganondorf growled.

Sure enough, they came to the sea, after batting aside leevers constantly for about 15 minutes. The things still kept bothering them. They kept punching, kicking, slashing, and blasting them while they tried to look around for where the jewel could possibly be.

"Well, this…is…the…water…area…so…the jewel…is…most likely…the water jewel," Vaati said between dodging and blasting leevers.

"I'm…not…going…in…the…water!" Ganondorf objected. So they continued along the beach, eventually coming across an area where a Zora was holding some sort of pot-smashing game. To their relief, there were no leevers here.

"Uh, hey there!" the Zora said, trying to edge in front of the sign that said there was a game, hoping they'd just pass by. Ganondorf had already seen it, though.

"If we smash all these pots in one move, we get 90 rupees?" he repeated what the sign said.

"Uh, well, yes," the Zora admitted in defeat.

"I'll do it!" Vaati summoned up a small whirlwind and threw it at the pots. They all flew skyward and then smashed on the ground, a couple of seconds later.

"Okay, you win," the Zora forked over the 90 rupees and Vaati put them in his change purse. The trio continued along the beach.

"I think we're getting further away from it," Knil deduced. "It is likely in the waters extending from the other end of the beach," Ganondorf said some mean things as they backtracked to where the leevers hung out. They killed a few and then climbed/flew up to the building with the hook on the roof. "Wait…its not in the water at all," Knil looked over at the ridge to their right.

"Let's go look, Ganondorf," Vaati said, flying off. The Gerudo King followed him and they both landed on top of the ridge. Knil managed to scale it by driving his blade into the rock and using it for a second jump.

"It's beyond this cove," Knil deduced. So they set off along the tops of the ridge, unaware of the green-clad Zora and his two companions swimming underwater below, the former two with magic bubbles over their heads to keep from drowning. Finally, the group of villains found themselves standing at the edge of a large lagoon that was overlooked by a fortress and patrolled by Gerudo Pirates.

"There are Gerudo here," Vaati observed. "I assume they're your relatives?" he looked at Ganondorf.

"Distantly, but I am no king here, and I'm sure they've found the jewel," Ganondorf replied. "The Gerudo Pirates are nothing like the Gerudo Thieves. They're much more…ignoble, to put it simply,"

"So what are we waiting for?" Knil muttered. "A fortress like this is nothing to us,"

"Perhaps not, but we shouldn't face them with brute force, face to face, they are no fools," Ganondorf warned. "We should attempt to infiltrate as subtly as possible,"

They crept along the ridge and leapt the gap to the ridge that led to the front gate. Of course, the gate wasn't open, so they scaled the walls, Knil assisted by Vaati's wind magic.

"So where do you think they're storing it?" Vaati asked Ganondorf.

"The Gerudo leaders tend to like to keep the most valuable loot near themselves, so we need to find the leader's room," he replied.

"It's that central building," Knil pointed to the other end of the complex.

"Off we go then," Vaati commented. Suddenly, though, an alarm bell began to chime within the complex. "Are we detected?" the wind mage exclaimed.

"Unauthorized persons have been detected in the waterways. Proceed to intercept and neutralize," the leader's voice yelled from a primitive horn device. Several guards left their posts to run off to the waterways, leaving a path open to the central building.

"How convenient," Knil scoffed as they analyzed the now guard-less bridge that led straight there from a sentry tower.

"Now to create a diversion," Vaati added, firing a wind spell at a pile of crates on the other side of the complex. The guards nearest the tower went over to investigate and they jumped down, quickly ascending the tower and running over to their destination and slipping inside before they were seen. The trio walked slowly in and hid behind two conveniently-placed barrels as they peeked at the pirate leader and her personal guards.

"This is definitely one of the sacred jewels," she held it up to the light. "A treasure worthy of the Gerudo Pirates,"

"But, Aveil, such things are dangerous to have, remember the old stories?" one of her guards warned.

"Pah! Believe that rubbish if you will," Aveil replied. "This treasure is ours now,"

"Not so fast!" a woman in a white dress with red hair suddenly jumped out of the air vent, followed by a scruffy-looking man with overalls and a pitchfork and another, fatter, scruffy man in overalls who was unarmed. "You just admitted that you have Cremia and Malon here!"

"I did no such thing!" Aveil retorted. "Seize them!" The royal guards advanced on the group with sabers drawn.

"This ain't good," the fat man observed.

"That's quitter talk! Let's go!" the woman jumped back and fired a volley of arrows, but they were dodged. The guy with the pitchfork caught one of the Gerudo before she recovered and hurled her into a wall while the fat guy threw a crate at the other. She sliced it asunder just in time to take a light arrow to the face and collapse.

"Hmm…perhaps you have some skill, after all," Aveil admitted, getting up and drawing her sabers. "But the fun is just getting started.

"Hey, its you guys!" Link exclaimed as he, Lucius, and Kafei entered the room.

"Link!" Ganondorf exclaimed. "You're late this time!"

"Is that Romani?" Lucius said, peering over to where Romani and her comrades were all trying and failing to take down Aveil.

"We must come to her aid," Kafei added. "These villains will have to wait,"

"That's just fine with us," Knil replied. "We don't have time for you, anyway," They jumped aside as the barrels were smashed by one of the fat guy's smash tackles and Team Link charged forward to help out. Now outnumbered 6-to-1, one would think that Aveil would surrender or flee, but in her haughty pride, she chose to keep fighting against the odds. The pitchfork guy threw his pitchfork at her but she gracefully jumped over it, dodging the salvo of light spells that Lucius fired at her, and kicking the mustached man into a wall, KO'd. Link rushed forward and engaged her in fierce melee combat as Romani and Lucius attempted to snipe the Gerudo leader. Nimble and deft, she managed to dodge every attack and still rain blows down on Link's shield. Kafei jumped in right about now, attacking as swiftly as she, forcing her to move even faster to fend off Link and the other thief. The fat guy then charged at her and decked her a good one, smashing her into a wall and sending the jewel flying right into Vaati's hand.

"We got it! Time to run!" Ganondorf declared as they ran out the door, ignoring their enemies' shouts of anger. Luckily, they were not pursued by said enemies, as they, it could be assumed stayed behind to lick their wounds and formulate an escape plan. The rest of the guards, however, were now stirred up like an anthill and all of them got in Team Shadows's way. Fortunately, they were only marginally better with their spears as the Clock Town Guard, so they were batted aside as they ran for the gate, which was still shut. With a fierce cry, Ganondorf Warlock Punched the gate to pieces and they ascended to the clifftops, fleeing as bells rang wildly and voices shouted in rage.

It was 15:08 by the time they made it back to the beach. Unfortunately, luck was against them today, as the helmeted guy, the scholarly guy, and the armored woman were looking around area, coming back from the other end of the beach.

"Look, Rusl, its those villains again!" the scholarly guy yelled, pointing.

"Well, I was getting bored, anyway," the armored woman pulled out her bow.

"Ashei, Shad, back me up!" Rusl barked, pulling out his sword.

"It's just one thing after another today," Vaati sighed, floating up in the air and summoning wind currents.

"I will repay you for last time," Ganondorf declared as the two groups charged forward. Knil and Rusl clashed blades as Ganondorf attempted to punch Shad, but the scholar was too quick for him and trapped him in a sinkhole with his Arcane magic before battering him with fireballs.

Ashei fired several volleys at Vaati, but he blocked them all and retaliated with a huge blast of wind that sent her flipping away, head-over-heels, before she slid to a stop, back-flipped back onto her feet, and fired a light arrow as he charged at her. Vaati spun out and had to fly a loop before he recovered.

Knil parried several more fierce blows, slowly backing up, and then rolled around Rusl, slicing him across the back and causing him to fall down, his fight depleted.

Ganondorf, meanwhile, finally broke out of the sinkhole with a burst of dark energy and punched Shad out. He and Knil went over to where Vaati was trading arrows and wind spells with Ashei, the former blocking some of her arrows (except the light ones). She quickly noticed that her comrades were beaten and uttered a curse before leaping away and firing several volleys at Knil and Ganondorf. The former dodged and deflected while the latter took several hits and quickly started to look like a pin-cushion. Fortunately for him, it was minor annoyance and he fired a few dark blasts at her as she landed. She attempted to jump and flip out of the way, but Vaati was already firing wind spells where she was landing and she was sent sprawling into the pot smashing game. The Zora, of course, had already run for it, as had the others in the area.

"That smarts," Ashei muttered as the villains advanced. She shot three light arrows at them, but only two found their mark and Ganondorf and Vaati were repelled and hurt sorely. Knil, though, jumped over it and landed right in front of her. She could scarcely utter a gasp before he punched her in the stomach and roundhouse-kicked her onto the ground. So the trio of detectives was defeated again.

Team Shadows took a breather after this, but not too much of one; they knew that Link and the others would be along eventually.

"Cursed wench," Ganondorf grumbled, glaring at Ashei's prone form, as he plucked each arrow out with a grunt.

"Well, at least we're all conscious this time," Vaati admitted, munching on their current meal ration. Ganondorf plucked out the last arrow and wolfed down his ration before they saw someone on the other end of the beach and ducked for cover.

"That's Link, all right," Ganondorf muttered, peeking around the corner. "As much as I'd like to beat the tar out of him, I don't feel like it right now,"

"And we're not really in any condition for it," Vaati added. Knil humphed.

"Speak for yourself," he scoffed.

"Well, we're not all perfect like you," Ganondorf snapped.

"It looks like they're leaving," Vaati commented, now looking around the corner. He looked at the sky, and gauged the sun's position. "and it's around 16:00, so we have two hours until nightfall,"

"I assume they're heading for the town," Knil commented, arms crossed. "We may have to wait a while until they're out of the way, that is, if you don't want to be seen," Ganondorf flopped down in the sand, ignoring the stinging from his arrow wounds.

"What about those guys?" he gestured to the comatose group they had defeated.

"We'll only be a half hour, for good measure," Vaati replied. "They'll surely stay out for that long,"

A half hour passed slowly, with the three reclining in random spots, listening to the wave lap at the shore and feeling the sun warm them.

"That should be long enough," Vaati said at last, hearing the bell toll the half hour. Ganondorf grunted and started to come out of his semi-asleep state. Knil simply got up and waited for the other two to follow suit.

They trudged back over to the other side of the shore, Ganondorf getting a rude wake-up call when a leever smashed into his leg, which was full of arrow wounds. He kicked it all the way out to sea. It was 17:00 by the time they reached Termina Field again and 17:15 by the time they reached the gates. This time, there were three guards at the gates. Apparently, security had been stepped up because of all their gate-breaking.

"Halt!" the guard shouted. "No suspicious-" Ganondorf punched him out. One of the others came rushing at them as the third rang the alert bell. Vaati quickly knocked him out while Knil did the same to the one on the offensive. More guards were already running up so Vaati summoned a whirlwind and knocked them all away before they fled to the roofs again.

"Is it just me or has the number of guards increased lately?" Vaati pondered aloud.

"Who cares? Let's just get to the inn and hope our room's still available," Ganondorf retorted.

It was easy to get to the inn and there was no one in the hall, either. Once inside the room, Knil sat down against the wall, as usual, and Ganondorf lie down on the bed. Vaati walked over to the window and looked at the red and gold sky in contemplation.

"What is it?" Ganondorf asked, not really sounding like he cared.

"Things are getting stranger every day," Vaati commented. "Monsters are increasing in number every day, the town guard is increasing its ranks, and there is an ominous air over the land, which grows every day,"

"Why are we worried? We thrive in such conditions," Ganondorf replied. "Only people like Link fear the darkness and hate monsters," A wolf howled in the distance.

**Night of the Third Day**

"I suppose…" the wind mage sat down on his bed and lie down as well.

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**Chapter 2 comes to a close. This one was long enough to stand alone (my quota is usually 4 pages), although it actually has fewer words than the last one, which was combined from three chapters :(. Anyway, the suspense is heating up a little, but since when does Team Shadows think before they act? Review and tune in next time for the next day's events. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	3. Team Shadows Level 3

**Chapter 3 starts now. I still own nothing but OCs.**

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Level 3

**Dawn of the Fourth Day**

They were awoken at dawn by the ringing of many bells in South Clock Town.

"What do you suppose that is?" Vaati inquired of no one in particular as he sat up and stretched.

"Maybe they caught somebody," Ganondorf suggested groggily, turning over to avoid the sunlight coming through the window.

"No…that many bells couldn't be a call for reinforcements," Vaati deduced. "Let's go see what's up," Ganondorf gave a derisive snort as Vaati got up and passed out some rations.

They crept along the rooftops to South Clock Town, a half-asleep Ganondorf in tow, and laid down on the roof to better eavesdrop on the mass of people and guards below.

"As of today, no one may enter or leave Clock Town," the guard captain, Viscen, announced from a make-shift podium. There was a general muttering at this. "It seems," he continued. "That the monsters outside town are now not only more numerous and aggressive, but are spawning new, dark versions of themselves. The Town Guard is attempting to ascertain the cause, therefore we also place a curfew on the entire town. No one is to leave their houses unless necessary and they must be escorted by a guard while in the streets. Guards will patrol the streets in pairs, 24 hours a day, in shifts, from this point forward. That is all. Look to the postman for letters containing any further instruction," After this, Viscen left the podium and headed back to the mayor's office, and the crowd was dispersed and led off by the guards.

"Perhaps you were right, last night," Ganondorf commented, now awake from interest.

"I was afraid of that," Vaati replied. "It is true that we have used monsters in the past," Knil humphed. "but their appearance now is nothing but an obstacle to our plans," The sound of the gates closing, with an ominous clang, met their ears and they looked over at the nearest one as the guards barred it. "Not to mention that, though we dare not admit it, we need this town for supplies and shelter and all traffic has just been barred,"

"That's no obstacle, at all," Ganondorf said dismissively. "This wall is quite scaleable to you and I,"

True, it was little hassle getting to the top of the wall undetected, and they coasted (or jumped) down to Termina Field with ease. It was then that they saw the new monsters with their own eyes. There were at least fifty of them; chuchus, black as night and glowing with some forbidden and deadly power. They rushed at the trio with bloodlust in their eyes and bit at them with razor teeth. Vaati blocked any that jumped at him with an air shield and tore them apart with air blades. Ganondorf punched and kicked every assailant he could reach, splattering black goo everywhere. Knil slashed through them easily and fired a salvo of energy bursts at larger cliques. The bell tolled 07:00 by the time they were done with the creatures, sporting a few cuts and bruises.

"These are definitely not of our doing," Vaati crouched down to examine the remains. "But they exhibit similar powers of darkness,"

"The next jewel is north of here," Knil commented, ignoring this.

"You heard him, Vaati, there's no reason to think about this," Ganondorf added. "We just defeat whatever gets in the way, simple," Vaati sighed and followed them as they went around Clock Town to head for the northern part of the field.

The trip was rather uneventful until they reached the area preceding the foothills of Snowhead. A massive tongue of blue flame shot at them as they quickly jumped out of the way; a roar followed.

"Blast!" Ganondorf shouted as they gazed upon a glowing, black Dodongo. It unleashed another torrent of blue fire, but Vaati stopped it with an air shield, though it was quite the strain on his powers. Knil dashed behind it and leapt in the air, stabbing into its tail. It roared in agony as it spun around, flinging Knil into a wall, causing it to crack around the impact point. Ganondorf, getting the idea, delivered a mighty Warlock Punch to the tail and was rewarded by another roar and being knocked back, sprawling, by the whipping tail. Knil, not too fazed by his encounter with the wall, jumped down and stabbed its tail again as it tried to fry Ganondorf. It screeched and, finally, fell over, smoke leaking from its mouth. Ganondorf spat on it derisively and they proceeded up to Snowhead.

It may have been Spring, but trudging up the steep slopes was no simple task, especially with Black Wolfos attacking every few seconds with more aggressiveness and sharper fangs and claws than ever.

"That guard captain wasn't kidding," Ganondorf grunted as he roundhouse kicked another Black Wolfos into a wall. "How are we going to find the jewel in all this?"

"What? Getting tired?" Knil gave a sneer, cutting down two Black Wolfos at once.

"Goddesses, no!" Ganondorf growled, blasting away several more with a salvo of spells. Vaati gave a sigh at their childish antics.

The group continued to fight their way up until they finally came out into an open, grassy field, with ponds, and a cliff overlooking it; there was a large building in the middle of the area. However, the natural beauty of the area was marred by the hordes of Black Wolfos lingering around. "Just how many are there!" Ganondorf roared, smashing his fist into the ground and blowing back a couple dozen with the resulting shockwave (as well as almost unseating his allies, who dodged it just in time).

"Watch where you're attacking!" Vaati scolded as he raised his hands and sent a whirlwind rampaging around, picking up many enemies and slicing them with thousands of wind blades before hurling them away.

"Plug it!" was Ganondorf's retort. Knil ignored this little exchange and continued making mincemeat of the Black Wolfos with his sword, slowly working his way into the middle of the horde and away from the others. This was a bad strategy, given the numbers, but he had a plan. As they closed in on all sides, his body glowed silver and then a great explosion emanated out of him and blasted them all away. The wind blew through the field as the victors regrouped on the recent battlefield.

"This is ludicrous," Vaati commented. "Even if we find the jewel, we may never get it. Team Link is the least of our worries right now," Knil gave a humph. "And you know it too,"

"There's just a lot of them," Ganondorf replied stubbornly. "The going may be slow, but we will seize the jewel from under Link's nose!" He clenched a fist in front of him for emphasis.

"We need to go east," Knil added, arms crossed and looking at the path that lead said direction through the rock walls around them.

"All right, but just remember that we must use due caution now, despite how powerful we may be," Vaati warned.

So they proceeded down the path and came to another open area. This one was full of water, with a series of islands, bridged by planks, leading across to another path. To their left was a ramp that lead to a doorway to somewhere. Of course there were several Black Wolfos out here, but many were dead, as though someone had broken through their ranks.

"I get the feeling Team Link is ahead of us," Ganondorf deduced. Knil gave a humph and took the lead, slashing aside any foe that tried to break his stride, and they proceeded to the path ahead, which led to the Goron Village, if a village it could be called. It was more of a few caves that Gorons lived in. Said area overlooked an abyss that had several pillars standing ominously in it. This area was relatively monster-free, which was no surprise, as the Goron guards that stood by the entrance, and in several other spots, looked like they could crack a Wolfos's skull with one arm tied down.

"Ho! You are human?" one of the guards asked as they entered. "That is better than monsters. Lately, they have increased in numbers and attempted to storm the town, but they are no match for Goron might," The villains had no real reply for this and, apparently, one wasn't required. Gorons commonly bragged about their might and whatnot. "Three humans have already come here, looking for red stone. Do you look, too?" Giving no reply, Team Shadows continued by; surprisingly, they were admitted with no fuss.

"Now where is that blasted third jewel?" Ganondorf grumbled, to nobody in particular, as they scanned the village for any clues to where Team Link or the jewel could be. Knil stared pensively out at the abyss that was next to the village.

"It's out there, then?" Vaati asked. Knil nodded slowly, uncrossing his arms and walking over to the edge of the cliff.

"And how, do you propose, we get out there to find it?" Ganondorf asked with a frown. "You can't fly and we need you to find where we're going," Knil stared at the thin air for a while, making the others think he had finally lost his mind, when they suddenly heard a loud voice echo from the other side of the abyss.

"Chalk one up for the good guys!" the familiar voice resounded.

"That's Link!" Ganondorf growled. "Where is he?" They soon got their answer as the enemy team appeared, riding some sort of glowing platform of light. Lucius was standing there with an expression of total concentration and the head of his staff aglow, so it could be assumed that he was projecting the platform for them.

"That's an interesting trick," Vaati commented interestedly. "I should learn an adaptation of it,"

"I'll teach that kid to usurp the King of the Gerudos!" Ganondorf raged, firing a ball of energy at the approaching platform. Link gave a cry of surprise and whipped out his mirror shield just in time to bounce it back.

"Lucius! Hurry this platform along!" Kafei shouted.

Ganondorf saw the ball coming and batted it back with a grunt, but it was bounced back again, faster this time, as they were getting closer. He batted it back again, but was unable to deflect it upon the next rebound and was knocked back several paces by the resulting explosion. "ARGH! That little…" The platform was almost upon them now. Link donned the Bunny hood and leapt at them. They all dodged, but he performed a double-speed Hurricane spin after them as the others arrived and disembarked. Vaati held an air shield against the attack, but was still being pushed back. Knil and Ganondorf left him to it as they rushed Lucius and Kafei. Kafei flipped out of the way as Knil took a swing but quickly had to block a flurry of blows as the alter ego recovered, almost instantly. Ganondorf fired powerful waves of darkness at Lucius, who barely blocked it and sent it flying in random directions with a cry.

Link's attack was ended and now he was blocking wind spells and dodging flying objects. He glanced over as Lucius dived out of the way of a Warlock Punch and blocked another with a magic barrier.

"Lucius!" he dashed over and gave Ganondorf a shield attack to the face, catching him partially off-guard and sending him hurtling into the abyss. He barely recovered in time to avoid hitting the bottom. "Here," the hero handed the mage a vial of green potion. "You can't fight with depleted magic," A salvo of magic suddenly smashed into them as Lucius chugged the potion and Link was send smashing into a wall.

"Don't let your guard down, idiot!" Knil reprimanded. Vaati swooped over to engage Kafei and immediately sent a whirlwind after him. Lucius jumped back as Knil fired another salvo at them and sent a beam of blue light out of his hand. The beam flew to Link and he glowed briefly before getting back up, wounds gone.

"Thanks!" Link said gratefully.

"YOU!" Ganondorf raged, having flown out of the pit. Lucius ran over to engage him.

"That ridiculous mask won't save you," Knil threatened, looking at the twitching bunny ears in an annoyed fashion.

"Wanna bet?" Link replied with an annoying grin.

"Your light can't save you forever, Lucius!" Ganondorf shouted as the mage dodged another Warlock punch. Lucius countered by firing a bolt of light into his face and sending him flipping back through the air. He quickly righted himself and fired a salvo of dark energy blasts.

"Divine Lightning!" the mage cried, casting the lightning of judgment against the dark attack. Ganondorf summoned a Black Hole and fired the mass of energy at the bolt. The two clashed with loud noises of electrical interference and the entire area shook.

Vaati continued making his whirlwind chase Kafei, but the thief suddenly ran up the side of a rock outcropping and launched himself at the wind mage.

"Blast!" he released his whirlwind and brought up a shield but Kafei threw a smoke bomb at him. "Ah!" he was blinded by the stinging dust. Suddenly, he felt several slices all over his body and then a blow to the head that smashed him into a wall, taking him out of the fight for the moment.

"Humph, I must admit that you're faster with that mask," Knil sneered as he and Link fought through the village, he pushing the hero back with each flurry of blows. "But I'm still the better fighter," He locked swords with Link and then glowed silver again. The detonation destroyed the bridge they were on and they fell to the lower level, picking up the fight immediately as they landed. Knil jumped over Link's swing and slashed downward, but the blow bounced off of the mirror shield. Link took advantage of this by performing a leaping spin attack, injuring Knil several times before he went sprawling away. Quickly leaping up, he dodged a smoke bomb that suddenly came out of nowhere by leaping back onto the upper paths. Kafei cursed and dashed along a rock face before doing and flip and landing behind Knil. Unfortunately, the alter ego had already spun and now the thief was deflecting blows like the wind. Link suddenly jumped up from below and slashed downward. Knil did a pivoting flip over Kafei, but still suffered a cut across his lower back. Such an injury was a trifle, however, and he kicked Kafei into Link, knocking them both off of the bridge.

A few drops of sweat dripped from Lucius's face as he forced his spell at Ganondorf. The Divine Lightning was his ultimate spell, but that didn't mean that it couldn't be overpowered. His opponent wasn't doing much better. In fact, he finally gave out around this point and was pierced with light.

"AGGGH!" he roared as he was fried by the light and fell into the abyss, crashing into the ground below. Lucius sighed and ran over to where Knil had jumped down to engage Link and Kafei again. They were both trying valiantly to strike him but, aside from a cut on his back, there was no damage, and he kept dodging and blocking them.

"Is this really all there is to Team Link?" Knil smirked, flipping backwards as Lucius fired a salvo of fire blasts at him. They barely missed his allies as they too jumped away.

"Watch where you're aiming!" Kafei reprimanded. Knil fired a dark blast at him in his moment of distraction and he was forced to dodge it, but a second caught him in the face and he flew off to land somewhere in the scenery. Link's strike was blocked a second after the spell hit and the hero looked a bit annoyed at this opponent that just had no weak spots. He continued swinging at him as Lucius cast another restoring spell on him and then proceeded to fire bolts of light at Knil, forcing him to mix up his strategy a little. He rolled out of the way of one of Link's swings and behind him, performing a spinning strike. Link, however, seeing and knowing what move he was using, countered with a backwards Helm Splitter and severely injured Knil's shoulder. He jumped away and faced the heroes, holding his blade with his good arm and grimacing in anger and pain.

_Blast it. _he growled in his head. _I can't move my left arm. _Lucius took advantage of this diversion and fired a salvo of light bolts at Knil. Though right-handed (the opposite of Link), Knil was at a sore disadvantage without his left arm, not that that stopped him from deflecting the spells away with a swing of his blade and attacking Link viciously. He jumped at the hero, smashing his blade into the mirror shield and then springing off of it, flying at Lucius. The mage jumped back but the alter ego was on him in an instant, slashing at him. His staff deflected a few blows before Link caught up and kicked Knil in the back, sending him sprawling towards the abyss. He rolled back to his feet, inches from the fall, and deflected several more bolts of light before the foothold gave way, having been weakened by the two mighty spells clashing earlier.

"LINK!" he roared in outrage, falling into the pit and seeing blackness.

Through his dreams, Knil could see two glowing lights, one green, one blue. The lights comforted his aching body, for they were the power that brought him into being, though he didn't know what that meant? _Just who am I, anyway? _he thought.

Pain coursed through him as he awoke in a rocky, misty area. His body protested movement, but he managed to climb to his feet while leaning on the wall nearby with his good arm. It was then that he remembered…he had been defeated, by Link and his foolish friends, no less! And worse yet…

He pulled out the green and blue jewels. Worse yet, those idiots had escaped with the red jewel! Curse them all to the depths of darkness!

After cooling down for a while, he decided that he needed to find Ganondorf, as he was the only one down here in the abyss, which was where Knil was sure he was too. So he began his slow limp through the cold fog after sheathing his sword that, thankfully, had landed nearby without impaling him or something. Link would pay for slicing his shoulder like this, he could feel the blood leaking out as he looked around for some sign of Ganondorf. In the distance, the clock tower rang 14:00, as though in mockery of how it was in a place that was safe and comfortable.

Vaati managed to rouse himself as the bell tolled 14:00. He ached all over, but at least he could move. Getting slowly to his feet, ignoring the protests of his injuries and throbbing head, he pondered the time.

_14:00...I've been out for an hour, at least._ he looked around. "Ganondorf! Knil!" he shouted. No reply. _I suppose I'll have to look for them._ He set off through the village on foot, his magic too depleted for unnecessary flight right now.

Knil heard Vaati's shout but didn't feel capable of replying. His body was, mainly, focused on keeping itself going. After stumbling along for a couple more minutes, the alter ego finally saw a silhouette slumped on the ground ahead and headed for it. The Gerudo King slowly came into view and looked almost as bad off as Knil felt. His skin and clothes were blackened and his breathing labored from the immense amount of light that had coursed through his body. The ground under him was cracked, indicating the hard impact he'd suffered and it probably hadn't helped him out any by giving him more damage. Knil slumped down to his knees next to his grudging ally and hoped that Vaati would arrive soon. Though he would never admit that he needed help, Knil knew that he needed the wind mage to find them.

Vaati had searched the entirety of the village and even enlisted some Gorons to help, after they'd come out of their caves to see what was going on. He 'conveniently' neglected to mention that he was the one of the 'bad guys' in the fight and the guards, whom had watched the whole thing with admiration for the strength, said nothing. Finally, the wind mage came to the edge of the abyss and stopped. _Could they have fallen down there?_ he jumped in and slowly coasted to the bottom. _I best find them quickly._ He set off across the area, knowing that a search like this could take all day. If only he had the strength to summon a whirlwind. _It's worth trying, I suppose._ He raised his hands and wind came from him, blowing away the fog for a full minute while he scanned the area, panting slightly. "There!" he exclaimed, going over as quickly as his battered body would allow. Knil looked up as he approached, giving him a look that plainly asked what took him so long. Vaati was shocked at the bloody gouge in his shoulder and the limpness of the corresponding arm. "Knil! What happened?" The alter ego humphed, despite feeling wearier than he had ever felt. "Never mind," he examined Ganondorf, looking very unhappy. "He needs medicine, quickly," Vaati observed, standing and looking up at the cliff face. "And I'm not sure I can get us back up there," No reply was forthcoming. "All right, I'm going to try something," He walked over to them and held out his arms. His fingers started to glow with a violet light as they were lifted by an invisible platform of air. It carried them over to the cliff at a fair pace and they slowly started the ascent.

After ten grueling minutes, Vaati set them down a fair distance from the cliff and fell to his knees.

"That took a lot out of me," he gasped, feeling drained. _Now where do I get medicine in these parts?_

"Hello, humans," one of the Goron guards from earlier had been watching from afar and had come over. "I see that you are wearied from your endeavors of great strength," He held out a sizable stone cup of steaming liquid. "When our warriors are weary of training, we drink of the healing hot springs. They revitalize and heal,"

"I see…" Vaati took the heavy cup with trembling hands and took a swallow. It tasted like it was full of minerals (see bitter) but he felt himself get back his energy immediately. Moving to Knil, he gave him a sip as well and then he emptied the rest on Ganondorf after pouring a little in his mouth and forcing him to swallow.

"Ugh…" the Gerudo King grunted in pain, his eyes opening a little. "What happened?"

"From the looks of it, you took more light than was good for you," Vaati explained. Knil still couldn't move his arm, but at least he could move now. If only Ganondorf hadn't needed the whole cup…

"If you need to soak in one of our hot springs, follow me and I will show it to you," the Goron began to walk off for the exit to the village. The trio managed to follow, though Ganondorf swayed as he trudged along. The Goron led them over the first wooden bridge and to a hole in the ground. He stepped in the hole and floated down magically onto a magic panel, the other realized, as they followed him. The cave was mostly filled with steaming water. It was only about 2 ½ feet deep at most. The smell and feel of the air relaxed them as the Goron bid them take their time and farewell before leaving. Ganondorf immediately trudged into the spring and sat down, letting the feelings of bliss and healing overtake him. Vaati waded in next, sitting opposite and letting out a little sigh as the fatigue and wounds washed away. Knil humphed and got in last, going to the far end of the spring and lying down, letting only his face stick out. The water in his wound stung a little, but it was beginning to patch itself up under the hot spring's influence. Knil closed his eyes and contemplated how he would get revenge but soon found himself interrupted by Ganondorf's obnoxious snoring.

After soaking for a while and eating some rations, they finally left as the bell tolled 15:30 and looked around for Black Wolfos, seeing none and feeling relaxed, they began to plan their next move.

"Well, we have two jewels and Team Link has one," Vaati summarized. "That means that the last one, judging by the pattern so far is in Ikana Canyon,"

"Yes, I sense it southeast of here," Knil agreed, arms crossed.

"At any rate, it will be nightfall before we reach Clock Town again, assuming we want to bother with infiltrating it," Ganondorf interjected.

"Yes, I suppose you're right," Vaati nodded. "The trip back will take until 16:30, at least, with the new monsters. Let's head out,"

So they proceeded back through the grassy plain, hampered by a few Black Wolfos that had appeared in the time they'd been at the village. They made it back to Termina Field by 16:00 and encountered three Black Dodongos. Luckily, it turned out they were dead. Credit for this was given to Team Link but that didn't make them happy. In fact, they were angry that the team was still ahead of them.

"If we run into them in Clock Town, you won't want to see how I'll react," Ganondorf predicted darkly. They finally approached the walls at 16:32 and ascended them, being on the lookout for anyone looking their way as they reached the top. Luckily, none of the patrols were looking up at the moment, so they dropped onto the rooftops and snuck over to the inn, finally reaching it as the clock rang 17:00. They walked in the top door and startled the innkeeper, Anju as she passed by.

"My goodness! Who are you?" she exclaimed, a hand to her heart.

"We're here to rent a room," Vaati dodged the question smoothly. "Please disregard our appearance, for we have spent a day long at work," She looked a bit wary, but lead them down to the front desk and charged them fifty rupees for a room, allowing them to finally dig into the massive amounts of money that the Black Wolfos had dropped. She handed them a key with a 2 on it and informed them that she'd bring up dinner around 18:00.

"Finally, we get some hot food tonight," Ganondorf said as they entered the room.

"Hmm…I wonder if Team Link is staying here, as well," Vaati pondered aloud, ignoring his companion. Knil gave a humph to indicate his doubt of the statement. A light knock at the door made them all jump to their feet defensively, forgetting that they had rented the room this time. Vaati opened the door and Anju came in with a tray that held three plates of steaming food and three cups of water.

"Enjoy," She gave them a smile and left, closing the door behind her. Ganondorf dug in immediately.

**Night of the Fourth Day **

A second later his face screwed up in disgust and he swallowed it slowly. Gerudos had bad means to live on in the desert and, as such, had learned to be able to swallow anything short of poison, but this was a test of that ability.

"Ugh! This food tastes worse than roasted leever!" he complained, drinking most of his water. Vaati tasted some of his and had to agree. Knil showed no sign of his opinion and ate quietly. "How can you eat this garbage?" Ganondorf demanded and was ignored.**

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Ha, ha, ha! I just had to make a joke about Anju's horrible cooking. And poor Kafei is married to her so he has to eat it all the time. Remember to review so I know how I'm doing. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	4. Team Shadows Level 4

**Here's the end of the Team Shadows story. I didn't think I'd be done this quick, but that just means that we'll have to look at another side to the story after this and, eventually, get to the combined finale of all the stories. I still own nothing.**

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Level 4

**Dawn of the Fifth Day **

They awoke to the bell tolling 06:00 and Anju knocking on the door with breakfast.

"How can cucco eggs even _get_ to look like this?" Ganondorf grumbled groggily, looking doubtfully at the portion on his fork before eating it with disgust. Knil humphed and crammed the ill fare in his mouth before going over to the door to await the others. Eventually, the others choked down the horrible food and went down to the desk, turning in their key, and exiting out the upper door. The clock tolled 07:00 as they set off across the rooftops, wary of the pairs of guards in the streets below. Scaling the walls, they soon were outside the east gate, looking at the barren path that led to Ikana Canyon.

"Watch out, there are many monsters about," Vaati pointed to the Black Bombachus. They were twice as large as a normal one and so were their bombs. "We'd better use a good strategy to get past these if we wish to keep our limbs,"

"I have an idea," Ganondorf said, holding out his hand. "Just blast them from a distance and destroy them with their own bombs,"

"That's…actually a pretty good idea," Vaati admitted, preparing to summon wind.

A few minutes and several earthshaking explosions later, the path was clear and pockmarked with black circles and small craters. Team Shadows continued in, scaling the fence with ease.

"Do you think that Link is ahead of us?" Ganondorf asked with a frown.

"Who knows?" Vaati replied. "He can be very undetectable, as can his companions, when they wish," They stopped as they spotted more Black Bombachus and then spent a few more minutes sniping them from afar. The clock tolled 08:00 when they finished, coincidently. Moving on, they approached a tall cliff and scaled it easily walking into a grassy area in the midst of all the wastes. It was apparent why, as they approached a pond that preceded another, taller cliff that could only be scaled by a small platform on the other side of the water and a means of scaling the cliff.

"This place is very fortified," Ganondorf commented. "If only Hyrule built their castle on top of unassailable cliffs, their castle wouldn't be so easy to assault,"

Crossing the river to the platform, they ascended up to the remains of Ikana and looked upon what little remained of the once-great kingdom. Only a ruined building or two, an old castle, and, oddly enough, a music box house. Of course, they quickly noticed all of the Black Gibdos around and how they were slowly coming their way. Their horrible screams echoed through the canyon, making their blood run cold as they tried to get into battle stances.

"Blast…" Ganondorf struggled against the spell and fired a salvo of energy blasts at the mummies, making them stagger. Knil and Vaati broke free of the spell with the screaming interrupted and wind and blade made short work of the undead hosts. Ganondorf kicked a dismembered arm and spat on it. "Cursed creatures,"

"Now where is the jewel?" Vaati looked around.

"I feel it in the castle," Knil replied, pointing at the already-ajar gates. "Team Link is likely already in there,"

They hurried into and through the mighty courtyard, seeing dead Black ReDeads and pockmarks from bomb explosions, littering the ground. As they passed through the antechamber, they spotted more slain Black ReDeads and went through the long hallway to what had to be the throne room. Finally, they stepped into the great chamber and looked upon the piles of black bones and Black ReDeads and Black Gibdos. The looking ceased after about three seconds, though, as Team Link was at the other end of the room, talking with a regally-clad Stalfos that could only be King Igus du Ikana.

"This jewel is an heirloom of this kingdom," he spoke loudly, holding the glowing, purple jewel aloft. "It has been stolen once, by a wind mage that crept into the stone tower and took it, but now it is back in my possession,"

"That's why we need it! We have to protect it from-" Link tried to appeal to him but was cut off.

"You think that your light can protect this jewel better than my darkness? The power of the king of Ikana?" Igus growled. "I disagree! Now, come, draw your weapons!" He looked over them at Team Shadows. "You too shall pay for trying to take this jewel!" Team Link spun to see their new opponents as Igus brought out his sword and shield.

"This is all we need," Kafei sighed.

"No time! Beware!" Lucius warned as the three leapt away from a mighty, downward swing. Igus then fired a stream of dark energy, from his mouth, at the other team, forcing them to jump aside as well. "Divine Lightning!" The lightning of judgment hurtled towards the undead king, but he hid behind his shield and the light shined everywhere but on him. When the glare faded, he laughed aloud.

"You cannot harm me with light so easily!" he rushed at Link and swung wildly at him. The hero barely deflected them with his mirror shield as Kafei threw a smoke bomb at the king. He was relatively unaffected. Lucius fired several bolts of light at him but they too were blocked.

"Take this!" Vaati hurled numerous wind spells at Igus as Ganondorf and Knil rushed him from the other sides. He blocked the spells, kicked Link away, and blocked Knil's strike before being decked by Ganondorf's Warlock Punch. His head went flying away but his body took a swing at Ganondorf, who dodged away, before fighting it out with Knil, who had to walk backwards and block from all the fierce blows. Kafei deftly dodged and flipped around the head as it attempted to bite him and breath streams of dark energy at him. Lucius fired bolts of light at it, only to have it dodge them.

"Hold it down, I can't hit it!" he shouted at Kafei.

"How do you suggest I hold it down?" the thief retaliated, wincing as the skull's teeth grazed his arm.

Igus's body continued to swing at Knil, who finally rolled around behind him and sliced him in the back. Unfortunately, it had little effect on the undead king and he kicked Knil in the face with a backwards kick, making him turn a flip and land on his free hand and feet before rushing back to the offensive as Ganondorf attacked it from the front.

"I've got it!" Vaati held the head in place with a wind barrier and Lucius summoned more bolts of light. The head took the hits and roared in outrage, breaking out of the barriers and heading back to its body. Igus was now angry. He blocked Ganondorf's Warlock Punch before giving him a roundhouse kick to the head and making him slide across the room before he could recover. He spun and blocked Knil's strike with his shield as Vaati fired a whirlwind at him and Link shot a fireball. Lucius was preparing to cast his ultimate spell again, but he had to wait for the right moment. Igus spun around, somehow repelling Knil, the fireball, and dissipating the whirlwind, before knocking Ganondorf and Kafei away again as they attempted to double-team him with a single attack. Suddenly, though, the king staggered, energy jumping all over him, as Knil's blast of light energy hit him in the back. One moment of distraction had left him wide open.

"Lucius, now!" Link shouted. The mage wasted no more time and raised his staff.

"Divine Lightning!" The lightning of judgment came again, this time striking the undead king of Ikana and burning his bones with the purity of light. He screamed and fled the room, searching for the dark solace of elsewhere, dropping the jewel as he went. Quick as a flash, they all went for it, but Kafei, being a thief, was quickest and soon had it in his hand.

"Blast!" Ganondorf shouted as Team Link gathered opposite Team Shadow as they regrouped as well.

"Well, the score seems to be tied," Vaati commented with a chuckle. "That means that there's only one thing to do,"

The clock tolled 10:00 as the teams stared each other down.

"So, _are_ you guys responsible for the new monsters lately?" Link asked. Knil humphed.

"If we were, do you think that we would have to fight them?" Ganondorf grumbled.

"Well, you and Vaati are the main living candidates for this sort of incident," Lucius pointed out.

"And your quest for the jewels raised more suspicion," Kafei added.

"Our vengeance upon you three is all that we seek, no more," Vaati replied with a mysterious smirk.

It was at that moment, at 10:05 on the fifth day, that the sun was suddenly blotted out of the sky and darkness fell upon Termina.

"What's going on?" Link looked out the high windows of the throne room.

"Let's go see," Ganondorf said, heading for the door. "Our battle will have to wait, Link, but I will have it,"

"Anytime, Ganondorf," Link replied as both teams headed for the roof.

It was plain to everyone that an ominous aura was in the sky to the west.

"Something is happening in Clock Town," Knil commented, looking emotionlessly at the aura of negativity in the distance.

"Could it have something to do with the unknown cause of the black monsters?" Lucius said contemplatively. Lightning flashed in the sky as the clouds overhead began to release an ominous rain.

"Whatever the cause, we must hasten there immediately," Kafei stated, already headed for the shortest way out of the castle.

So the six of them raced out of Ikana Castle, seeing more Black Gibdos rising out of the ground to waylay them. Lucius summoned the lightning of judgment and blew a path for them as they dashed to the cliff and quickly descended to the grassy area on the other side of the river.

By the time they fought through all of the Black Bombachus, the bell tolled 11:00. They stepped out onto Termina Field to see a horrible sight. Clock Town was ablaze. The gates were thrown down and monsters flowed in through the breaches.

"Anju!" Kafei yelled, taking the lead as they fought their way to the town.

"What's going on!" Link sliced through several Black Wolfos, only to be accosted by a Black Cyclops. Lucius hit it in the eye with a light bolt before Vaati launched Link at it by catching him with a whirlwind as he tried to perform a jumping spin attack. He flew the length of its body, shredding it, and it fell down with a loud thud that shook the area. Kafei jumped up on Ganondorf's fist as he charged a Warlock Punch and the Gerudo King launched him through a horde of Black chuchus.

Finally, they cut a swathe into the city and found the place in complete disarray. Guards were fighting everywhere in the streets while people ran from the burning buildings. Team Shadows charged in as four Black Cyclopes burst through the south wall and began smashing guards and buildings.

"No monster is going to wipe out any city!" Ganondorf declared. "I'm the only one allowed to do such a thing!" He flew up the body of the nearest one, dodging its swipes, and gave it a Warlock Punch in the eye, making it stagger back in pain. Vaati launched Knil up its body and he sliced it cleanly along the line of symmetry; it fell over immediately. The other three were on them, almost immediately, but one staggered, a pitchfork lodged in the back of its calf. Another was turned, effectively, into a pincushion as it was filled with arrows. Team Shadows dodged the last one as the other two turned to deal with Team Lon. Vaati blinded it with a wind spell as it advanced on his companions and Knil jumped on Ganondorf's fist to be Warlock Launched. The second Cyclops fell as quickly as the first. The third was so full of arrows that it looked like a porcupine, and Talon launched Ingo into its eye, pitchfork first, and took it down while Romani distracted the fourth with barrages of arrows. Knil ran up the back of its leg and launched himself up to its shoulder. Dodging its slap, he sliced across its throat and it fell over as he leapt clear. The four resounding impact shook the town.

"Aren't you guys the ones that stole the blue sacred jewel?" Romani asked.

"Maybe," Vaati replied evasively. "But now isn't the time for that,"

"We need to find Team Link and get those other two jewels," Knil stated flatly.

"In the middle of this battle?" Vaati exclaimed. "We'll never find them,"

"We will if we find the one who's behind this," Ganondorf pointed out.

"True…" Vaati admitted.

"People of Clock Town! Why do you resist?" an eerie, female voice suddenly boomed throughout the town. "Your destruction is inevitable,"

"Where is that coming from?" Ingo looked around in a jerky fashion, obviously perturbed.

"Submit to your fate, the fate that you avoided all those years ago, when the moon failed to fall," the voice continued.

"What in tarnation? That's a ridiculous notion!" Talon yelled.

"It sounds like it came from the clock tower," Knil observed. "That's where we'll find Link,"

"We're coming too!" Romani piped up determinedly. "No one kidnaps my sister and cousin and gets away with it!" Knil gave a humph and the six ran to South Clock Town, bumping into Team Eye as they arrived. Team Link was already there, looking up the tower at whatever was up there.

"Majora!" Rusl called up the tower. "Come down! Take what justice awaits you!"

"Majora!" the other heroes and villains, except Shad and Ashei, exclaimed, looking at him.

"Her emblem is on every one of these black monsters," Shad pointed to a fallen Black Gibdo and, sure enough, the Majora emblem was emblazoned under its chin.

"Very impressive. Most warriors wouldn't have seen that and just moved on after making the kill," Majora's Wrath came drifting down to land in front of them. Yet, it wasn't Majora's Wrath, the whips were gone from her arms and the face was more defined. More muscle tone and a deeper and darker power emanated from this body.

"Majora…I saw you die," Link grimaced.

"Did you?" she taunted. "I am a cursed deity, I won't die so easily! Even the Fierce Deity can't defeat me now!" She raised her hand. "Now feel the power of Majora Chaos!" Dark versions of Odolwa and Goht entered from the gate and tackled Team Lon, carrying them away into East Clock Town.

"Beast!" Ashei launched an arrow at Majora, but it bounced off of her flesh without leaving a mark.

"You are powerless!" she declared, rising up and hurtling a large blast of dark energy at the ground. All nine sprang aside, but Team Eye fell into the resulting pit as it filled rapidly with rainwater. "Now face this!" A Dark version of Gyorg fell from the sky and splashed into the water. "And you three pathetic excuses for villains,"

"What?" Ganondorf shouted indignantly.

"You too will feel my power!" she blasted them out the gate and into Termina Field.

"Such a cheap trick!" Vaati spat, getting up from the mud. Suddenly, the ground began to shake and two massive worms, both ebony and glowing, with pincers dove out with a roar before diving back in. The clock rang 12:00 in the city, as if in mockery of the chaos all around it. Knil looked over to where Fierce Diety Link and his team were fighting Majora on and around the clock tower.

"Let's butcher these things and get back in there," he declared. "This is no longer about villainy or heroism. This is personal,"

Dark Twinmold rampaged around the southern end of Termina field as Team Shadows dodged its attacks. The worms fired volleys of dark energy out of their mouths, destroying everything in the vicinity, as Ganondorf Warlock Launched Knil at one of the worms' heads. It turned and blasted him back and he fell to the ground. Vaati caught him with a whirlwind and hurled him back, aiming at the body. Knil slicing cleanly through it and the worm roared in agony. Unfortunately, now it was able to move faster and was angry and more aggressive. It swooped around and charged Knil, seizing him in its pincers and heading for the ground. Vaati launched Ganondorf out of a whirlwind and he hit the worm in the side with a flying Warlock Kick, making it drop Knil out of pain and shock. He hit the ground, hard, as Vaati was diverted from catching him by the other worm getting lucky and hitting him with one of its dark energy volleys. Knil leapt up as the worm spun to vent its rage on Ganondorf.

"Anti-Energy Cannon!" he cupped his hands and held them outright, aiming them at the worm, as iridescent energy surged around him.

"He's remembered!" Vaati exclaimed from his new position. The energy gathered into a massive ball in Knil's hands.

"FIRE!" A colossal beam tore through the air and annihilated the worm completely. Ganondorf, luckily, had gotten out of the way just in time.

"Whoa…" he breathed, at a loss for words. _So this is Knil's real power._ The other worm noticed its partner's death and went into overdrive, flying around the area at double speed and mowing Ganondorf and Vaati down a few times. Knil just dodged it easily, every time, and gave it a punishing slice along the body. The monster roared in distress and tried to think of a way it could win, but was distracted by a flying Warlock Kick that made it reel a few yards. Knil prepared his attack again as Ganondorf ran up its body and gave it a few punishing punches to the head.

"Anti-Energy Cannon!" Knil shouted, cueing Ganondorf to jump clear. "FIRE!" The iridescent beam cut through the air and, despite its attempts to escape, the worm was obliterated. The other two looked at him, firm and confident in his rediscovered power. "We still have two more battles to fight. Let's go!" He ran off for the town with the other two in pursuit.

"After we defeat Majora, Team Link's next!" Ganondorf shouted.

"This'll be easy for us!" Vaati chuckled as they entered the city for the last time in that conflict.

**End Team Shadows Story****

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**So how was it? I plan to do the Team Link story after this, so stay tuned to see what the other side was doing and thinking this whole time. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	5. Team Eye Level 1

**Okay, so I decided that Team Eye should be next instead of Team Link. Don't ask me why characters from TP are in Termina, which is obviously not from the same time period, because its just fuzzy game splice logic. I own nothing but the OCs!****

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Team Eye Story**

Level 1

**Dawn of the First Day**

Rusl stretched and yawned as he heard the clock tower's bell toll 06:00. He looked around at the drab scenery in room 5 of the Stock Pot Inn before his eyes came to rest on his companion, Shad, sitting at the small table that was in the room for meals; he was slumped over it, sleeping on his book; he had obviously fallen asleep while reading it. The swordsman turned his gaze to the other bed, where his other ally, Ashei was asleep. She looked a little odd with just her red pants and faded shirt on; her armor, gauntlets and greaves were in a neat pile at the bottom of the bed. Rusl rose from his bed and looked out the window, savoring the calm of the morning and the warm light of day. It was this kind of day that the team of detectives lived for, no crime, no travesty, just quiet peace. Of course, this wasn't to last, as a loud knocking on the door startled them all. Shad fell out of his chair and landed with a painful thump, on the floor. Ashei jumped up, grabbing her bow and quiver from beside the bed and looking around for the threat.

"I have mail for you!" a loud, obnoxious voice yelled through the door. "Express mail, directly from the Mayor!"

"The Mayor!" Rusl repeated, heading over to the door and opening it, revealing the postman, clad as he ever was, though his hat was slightly lopsided and he looked like he'd just rolled out of bed. He took the letter and gave the postman a blue rupee for a tip.

"Onward to mail!" the postman shouted, running off to go back to bed until his route started at 08:00. He just shouted the line out of habit. Rusl closed the door and opened the envelope, walking back over to where the others were sitting at the table.

"Is it finally a paying job?" Ashei asked moodily, not appreciating getting woken up by the annoying postman. "If not, I'm going to kick someone's butt, yeah?"

" 'To Team Eye, the government of Clock Town needs your services, please present yourself at Mayor Dotour's Office at 08:30 sharp this morning. Thank you for your time.', " Rusl read aloud.

"Why so late, I wonder?" Shad yawned, adjusting his glasses. "One would assume that an urgent meeting wouldn't be meaninglessly postponed unless in dire necessity," Rusl shrugged.

"Who knows the reasons? Let's just go to the Mayor Residence at 08:30," he said calmly. "Until then, we can find something to do in town," There was a light knock at the door.

"I have breakfast!" Anju said cheerfully through the door. How she could be so chipper in the morning was beyond Ashei. Rusl admitted her and she put the tray of three plates of steaming food and three cups, on the table. "Enjoy!" she headed out and closed the door behind her.

"I hate the food at this inn, yeah?" Ashei grumbled, attempting to choke it down anyway.

"Indeed, I long for the scrumptious edibles of the Castle Town Café and the delectable flavor of Goron-ground Coffee Beans that are plucked from the far peaks of distant mountaintops," Shad sighed, getting a bit lost in his own poetic imagery. Rusl, having grown up living off of pumpkins, goat milk, goat cheese, and fish, was able to eat most things, though he still had to wonder how cucco eggs even turned that color…

It was 07:30 by the time they finished breakfast, if so that so-called food could be called.

"Well, we have an hour to kill," Rusl commented, falling silent as he had no pre-prepared suggestion to tag on the sentence.

"I'll just sit here and read, shall I?" Shad replied, sitting down and immersing himself in his journal that he inherited from an ancestor.

"Well, I'm going on a walk around town," Rusl declared. "You've got to stretch your legs occasionally, right?" He donned his helmet and headed for the door and walked out of the room. He headed down the hall and went down the stairs.

"Good morning!" Anju greeted him brightly, looking up from the things she was sorting for the day ahead.

"Good morning," the swordsman tipped his helmeted head in reply before heading out the front door. _Ahh, the fresh morning air!_ he stretched and breathed deeply, looking around at the people beginning to go about their day. Starting off at a brisk pace, he headed down the path and towards South Clock Town. He noticed that the guards were overseeing the clearing of stalls in this area. Normally, merchants set up business here, but, apparently, their licenses to do so had been, temporarily, revoked, from what Rusl heard the guards and grumbling merchants saying. _Hmm…this is interesting…why would the Mayor revoke their licenses? I'll have to ask him later._

Meanwhile, Ashei, tired of sitting and watching Shad read his journal for the 50th time, had donned her gear and headed out for a walk as well. She too enjoyed the morning air, having been trained in the mountains, but her tough appearance would never overtly show it like Rusl. She headed up to the Mayor's Residence, wondering if she couldn't just wait inside for the meeting, but no, the sign clearly said that the doors weren't open until 08:00. Giving a resigned but annoyed sigh, she started leaning against the wall by the door, waiting for the bell to toll the next hour.

"Hey, Miss Lady," some kid with a bandana and a numbered shirt was standing in front of her. "What'cha all garbed up in armor for? You a soldier or somethin'?" She frowned. She wasn't good with kids. In fact, she wasn't good with people in general.

"No, I'm not," she said in the least brusque fashion she could. "I'm a free-lance detective,"

"Oh, that's cool!" he held out a hand. "I'm Tim, the recently-appointed leader of the Bombers," Ashei slowly held out a hand and shook the proffered one, letting go quickly. "We're a group of kids that help out folks with their problems,"

"Okay…" Ashei muttered, wondering how she got herself into these situations.

"If you ever need help with your detective work, just come talk to us!" he ran off down the street and into the North Clock Town gate nearby. The archer watched him go with a pensive expression but then reverted to looking bored and sullen and looked to the sky, waiting for the bell.

Rusl continued into West Clock Town. Walking up the street, he stopped at the bank. The banker was an odd person but kept their rupees with much enthusiasm.

"Hello! This is the Clock Town Bank, where your rupees are safe and sound!" the banker exclaimed as he stopped in front of the stall.

"How much is in the Team Eye account?" Rusl asked, holding up his bank card.

"Oh, Mr. Rusl, let me check," the banker looked in the bank book. "Team Eye currently has 12 rupees in its account,"

"All right, thank you," the swordsman bowed his head in thanks and headed on down the street. _Our team is in dire need of work, I can only hope that the Mayor plans to pay us well._ Continuing up the street at a leisurely pace, he looked up at the clock tower as it suddenly began to toll the hour of 08:00. Not two seconds later, the postman tore out of the post office and nearly bowled him over.

"Gotta keep up the schedule!" he announced, racing over to South Clock Town to begin emptying mailboxes of letters. Rusl straightened his helmet and looked a bit incredulously after the man, admiring his dedication.

Ashei had headed into the Mayor's Residence the instant that the door had given the subtle click of being unlocked.

"Oh, hello," the secretary greeted her before heading back to her desk. "Do you have an appointment?"

"Not for thirty minutes," Ashei replied, sitting down in a chair.

"Oh…okay…" the girl fell silent for a while. "Say, what kind of shampoo do you like?" Ashei rolled her eyes. She just had to get stuck in a room with a girly-girl. Why couldn't she have just waited to come here? "…that Kafei is really handsome, too bad he's married now…" she sighed and then realized what she said and then gasped. "Don't tell anyone I said that!" she then giggled behind her hand. Ashei was tempted to shoot herself with her bow but thought better of it.

Rusl headed over to South Clock Town himself, taking a left turn and going up to North Clock Town, where a kid with a bandana and a numbered shirt was shooting at a balloon with a straw and pellets.

"Hey, Mr. Swordsman!" the kid saw him and ran over. "You look pretty tough!"

"Well, I suppose," Rusl scratched the back of his head at the complement.

"Are you a free-lance detective too? Like Miss Lady?" the kid asked.

"Miss Lady?" the swordsman repeated.

"Yeah, she had armor and a bow and looked pretty tough," the kid replied.

"Oh, yes, Ashei and I are a team of free-lance detectives, and so is our bookworm companion, Shad,"

"That's an awfully rude way to refer to a distinguished comrade," Shad came walking up with his journal under one arm. "Here I am, walking for my health, and I come upon my ally speaking so callously of me,"

"Sorry, Shad, but I just meant that you're fond of reading up on things so that you can help us," Rusl apologized.

"Well, that much is true," Shad admitted with a shrug.

"Okay, I get it now," the kid said. "You're the brains," he pointed at Shad. "And you're the brawn," he pointed at Rusl. "So what's Miss Lady?"

"Hmm…" Rusl put his thumb and finger around his chin and looked up contemplatively.

"She's the one that supports us from the back lines," Shad replied, looking at a pocket watch. "And, unless I'm mistaken, we should hasten to Mayor's Residence forthwith, lest we be late for our appointment,"

"Very well," Rusl nodded and looked at the kid. "We must go now. Take care,"

"We shall see you at another time, I hope," Shad added.

"See ya!" the kid replied and watched them run off. "I wanna be cool, like them, someday," He went back to shooting the balloon with fervor.

"It's about time, yeah?" Ashei said in a very miffed way as Rusl and Shad came through the door, cutting off the secretary's tirade about current clothes fads.

"My apologies, our meandering through the town's environs was to waste time, you see," Shad replied, taking note of the pulsing vein in his female companion's temple.

"Um, its about 08:30, you guys can go in if you want," the secretary told them. As if to prove this, the bell tolled once outside.

Dotour looked up from his paperwork as they entered.

"Ahh, Team Eye! As punctual as ever, I see," he said with a glad smile.

"Oh, we couldn't wait to get here," Ashei muttered. Shad stomped her foot. She retaliated by kicking him in the shin. He gave a quiet moan of pain and hopped on the other foot, clutching the injured shin.

"Well, let's get down to business," Dotour continued, ignoring these antics. "Captain Viscen?" He came through the door at that moment. "Ahh, just in time,"

"Yes, sir," Viscen replied, closing the door and positioning himself in front of the Mayor's desk but still to the side so that the visitors could still see him.

"Captain, please explain the situation to them," Dotour requested, sitting back and making a finger pyramid of contemplation.

"Yes, sir," he pulled out a sheaf of notes. "Monster reports around Clock Town and in the outer areas have risen by 400% since last week," He looked up from the notes. "The Town Guard is launching an investigation on this turn of events, therefore, we hire you to leave town in our stead, as we cannot in the face of this possible crisis,"

"We will pay you 200 rupees for each completed assignment, which I will assign you each time you return," Dotour added.

"200!" Shad repeated. "Ponder upon all the delicious delectables we could purchase with such a ransom," Ashei kicked him in the shin and he hissed in pain, holding it again.

"Do you ever think about anything else?" she snapped. "We have a rent to pay, yeah?"

"By the way, take this," Dotour held out a pass and Rusl took it.

"A pass?" Rusl asked, looking at it.

"Yes," Viscen replied. "As you've likely seen, we've already cleared away the stalls in South Clock Town and any other non-essential outdoors events that will require people to be in an exposed area,"

"I heard that the Mayor revoked the merchants' licenses," Rusl agreed with a nod.

"The only way to make them leave without raising alarm that may not be needed, in the end," Dotour answered.

"Also, we are restricting traffic into and out of the city," Viscen continued. "Make sure you hold on to that pass, as anyone without one will be considered suspicious and dangerous and not admitted,"

"We will," Rusl put the pass away.

"Good," Dotour said, pulling out a map of Termina and placing it on the table. "Now, the most prominent place to check first would be east of here, in Ikana Canyon," He ran a finger from Clock Town to Ikana Canyon and tapped it twice. "It is a barren land of the undead, and possibly the spawning ground for new evils,"

"You want us to go investigate a haunted canyon?" Ashei repeated skeptically.

"It really is haunted," Viscen said gravely. "Shiro, a soldier that was wounded there for a month gave us eyewitness accounts of that,"

"All right, we will go," Rusl nodded.

"Before you go, here," Viscen handed over a satchel. "Here is a week's worth of provisions and 4 vials of blue and green potion, respectively. Any other provisions must be purchased with your own funds, on your own time,"

"We are eternally grateful, kind Captain," Shad replied.

"Think nothing of it. Now, I must beg your leave. There are many affairs I must attend to," he gave a small bow and left.

"We must be going too," Rusl also gave a small bow, as did Shad, and Ashei too.

The trio walked out of the Mayor's Residence and Shad looked at his pocketwatch.

"08:45," he announced. "We best be making haste if we wish to complete our assignment by day's end," Rusl put away the supply satchel.

"Off we go, then," he commented.

They headed over to the east gate and were stopped by the guard.

"So you're heading out to Ikana Canyon?" he asked. "It's dangerous over there, but the Captain said I should let you three through," He stepped aside. "Be careful out there,"

"Will do," Shad replied as the trio stepped out onto the grassless, rocky area that covered a decent chunk of the east side of Termina Field.

"I say, are those Real Bombachu?" Shad pointed at the rats running around between the pillars near the path that would lead them to their destination.

"You're the one with the books, yeah?" Ashei replied rudely, as was her wont.

"Oh, right you are," the scholar snapped his fingers and pulled a book out of his book satchel that he always carried. "Let's see…this creature will explode if we just run up and attack it, so-" Ashei had already started firing arrows at the explosive rats before he could finish and the blasts shook the air and ground so violently that Shad nearly dropped his bestiary. "We do that…" he finished lamely, stowing the book away, as they continued past the pockmarks on the ground and pillars. Moving on, they came to the gate that separated the canyon from the field around 09:10 and scaled it easily enough, though they trouble getting Shad over it, as he didn't want to risk scratching his fancy city clothes.

"There is a miniscule tear in my sleeve now!" he whined as they stopped and hid behind the big rock nearby to look at the Bombachus that were running around the area.

"Be thankful that is wasn't your body getting impaled on the spikes, yeah?" Ashei retorted impatiently, as she had been the one to pull him over the top of the fence and he was mainly directing his whining at her because of that.

"Now, now…" Rusl said disarmingly. "Let's just clear out these Bombachus," Ashei snorted and proceeded to snipe every one of them, an explosion following each hit. Once the way was cleared, the team approached the forbidding cliff that blocked their way.

"Any ideas?" Rusl asked.

"I suppose I have one," Ashei scoffed, tying a rope to an arrow and firing it at the tree on the cliff top. The arrow lodged in fairly well, as was proven when she gave the rope a couple of good yanks.

"Oh, good show!" Shad complimented.

"Yes, now let's begin the climb," Rusl added, grabbing onto the rope and beginning to pull himself up. Ashei grabbed it after he'd gone a decent distance and did the same.

"That's unfair! You two are donning gloves!" Shad protested. "Those coarse fibers will do horrible things to my hands!"

"Just get up here, yeah?" Ashei barked, making him let out a whimper and start climbing. She was tempted to cut the rope with him on it but decided against it.

After a couple minutes, they were all up and the archer untied the rope, stowing it away. So the group continued while Shad got over the hurt in his hands, coming to a grassy area in the midst of all the barren rock.

"This green seems very out of place in this place," Rusl commented.

"It must have relations to the presence of water in the area," Shad replied, still sounding a bit unhappy, pointing towards the sound of a waterfall and running water that was a short distance ahead. Besides that, though, the canyon was eerily quiet. Even the wind was loath to make itself known in this dead place. Finally, the motley group came to the side of the river as the bell tolled the half hour of nine. An purple octorok splashed to the surface and attempted to pelt them with a rock, but Ashei hit it with a quick shot and it whined as it died and floated downstream. Looking up yet another tall cliff, this one on the other side of the river, they pondered the crossing.

"Hmm…" Rusl looked up and saw a stone ledge with a dead tree on it and, looking over, he saw another on the other side and there was a dead tree next to them and one on top of the cliff top. "So who will solve this riddle? Will we try the rope again?"

"We only have one, it won't be easy," Ashei pointed out.

"Well, if we tie one end to this tree next to us," Shad suggested. "And then fire the other into that tree up there, we could manage something,"

"I doubt the rope is long enough, yeah?" the archer balked.

"Well," Rusl tried to gauge the distance. "We should try it anyway and then come up with another plan if it fails.

"All right…" Ashei sighed with a shrug, getting out her rope. She tied it fast to the tree and fired it at the tree on the cliff top. As predicted, it fell short and splashed into the river. "My point's proven," she fished it out, irritated.

"Try the one above us," Rusl advised.

"That ledge is too low and on the opposite side," Ashei replied.

"I'm sure that Rusl is aware of his own plans," Shad assured her. She grumbled and shot the rope again. This time, it stuck.

"All right, I'll head on up," Rusl jumped up and wrapped his arms and legs around the rope before climbing all the way up to the ledge. Ashei and a protesting Shad followed shortly. "Next…sorry, Ashei, but you'll have to cut the rope at the other end so that we can tie it to this tree and fire it at the one at the top of the cliff,"

"I thought you had something like that in mind, yeah?" she obeyed him and fired the rope up to their destination. "You owe me a new coil of rope when we get back to town, yeah?"

Another short crossing later, they were at the top of the cliff and got their first look at the fallen kingdom of Ikana. A ruined house or two populated the landscape, as did an old castle that must have been great in its glory days and, oddly enough, a colorful music box house that seemed out of place in the middle of the depressing landscape.

"What do you suppose that building is?" Shad asked, pointing to it.

"Good question," Rusl replied. "Let's go see," So they proceeded over to the house, the bell tolling 10:00 as they approached the door. The swordsman rapped his knuckles lightly on the door.

"Go away! There's no one in here for you!" a little girl's voice shouted rudely.

"Hey! Don't talk to grown-ups that way, yeah?" Ashei retorted.

"I'm not falling for that!" the voice replied. "There's nothing but monsters out there nowadays!" A piercing scream suddenly rang through the air, chilling them to the bone and keeping them from moving. Turning slowly, they saw three Gibdos coming towards them slowly. The spell slowly weakened as the mummies prepared another scream and Ashei took advantage of it, firing a light arrow at one of them, making it die immediately. Rusl was on them at once as Shad tried to break free of the spell, and sliced a second down as Ashei pelted the third with another light arrow.

"M-My word…" Shad leaned on the door, shaking slightly. "Th-Those were Gibdos…I never thought I'd see one,"

"They seem to have a power that paralyzes us so that they can attack us more easily," Rusl deduced. "We best be on the lookout for any more,"

_Free us…_

"What was that, yeah?" Ashei spun, an arrow ready, looking around for whatever it was.

_If you wish to know…_

"It's coming from that large tower on the hill," Rusl pointed to it.

_The danger that Termina now faces…_

"That's the Stone Tower Temple," Shad explained, looking at his map. Always prepared this man was.

_Free us…_

The voice faded after that. The team stood in the silence for a moment.

"I think that this is a lead," Rusl said finally. "We should go,"

"All right, but don't blame me if we get killed by zombies, yeah?" Ashei commented.

"Nothing I say will make a difference in the least, so let us just proceed," Shad agreed, still slightly scared from their current encounter with the local monsters.

* * *

**Poor Ashei, I just can't resist putting her in awkward situations, as she's so socially inept. Anju's horrible cooking makes a return (and, yes, that was in the game, in case you didn't know). In fact, she's actually Mutoh's (the carpenter boss's) daughter. I'll have to make a note of that. Anyway, remember to give me feedback so I'll be inspired and maybe learn a thing or two about doing certain scenes better. I have a mind to redo the villain story after I'm done with the others. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	6. Team Eye Level 2

**This chapter ended up running a bit long, but that's okay, as it's full of fight scenes. I still own nothing!**

* * *

Level 2

A few more Gibdos were foolish enough to challenge them as they headed up to the tower, but Ashei sniped them with light arrows, as they had arisen from the ground a good distance ahead. Once inside, they looked up the tall shaft that led up.

"I say, how shall we ascend a tower of such proportions?" Shad commented, straightening his glasses. As though in answer, a large platform came coasting down, in midair, from above. It stopped right next to their platform and they looked at it inquiringly.

"Maybe we're expected," Rusl deduced. "Or it could be a trap,"

"Well, we'll never find out standing here, yeah?" Ashei replied, walking forward and jumping aboard.

"You are most reckless, Ashei," Shad noted.

"Shut up, yeah?" she snapped.

"Well, I suppose this is the only way up," Rusl finally said, ignoring the others' antics. He walked forward and jumped on too.

"Oh…if I must," Shad sighed, getting a running start and leaping for the platform. However, he jumped too early and barely latched onto the side, feet swinging desperately as he tried to scramble aboard.

"You idiot!" Ashei yelled, seizing his left arm while Rusl grabbed the right. The platform began its ascent as they hauled him aboard. The bookworm sat on his hands and knees, panting, as the others stepped back and braced themselves against the momentum.

"One day, you're gonna fall into a bed of spikes and then we'll have to replace you, yeah?" Ashei grumbled. Perhaps it was her way of showing concern?

"I agree that you need to practice your field work skills," Rusl nodded.

"My apologies," Shad muttered. They rode for a quiet minute before a robed figure in a hood, bearing two saber-like blades, with glowing red eyes jumped aboard.

"We Garo do not suffer anyone to pass here, save those with great strength!" the Garo announced, performing a spinning leap at Rusl, who already had his sword out and dodged, striking at its back. It was no slouch, though, and bent backwards, putting its blade in the way with a clang. Ashei fired a light arrow at the foe while it blocked but it pivot jumped out of the way and over Rusl, delivering a kick to his back as it landed and sending him sprawling forward before leaping at Shad. It was then that the Garo suddenly realized that it couldn't move its feet. Glancing down, it saw that the stone of the platform had formed shackled around its feet, preventing any further movement.

"Away with you!" Shad shouted, holding out his left hand as he finished reading an ancient incantation from his journal. Several rock shards flew out of thin air at random spots and intervals, all around the Garo, striking its body in several places and making it screech in pain. Rusl, who had recovered quickly after being hit, prepared to strike as soon as Shad's spell was done. Ashei, though, possessed no such need or patience and fired a light arrow into the midst of the shard barrage. Screaming, the Garo flew backwards, turning a flip, and landed on its feet, an inch from the platforms edge, as it arrived at its destination.

"Flip the temple to reach the giant," it said cryptically.

"Flip…the temple?" Shad repeated.

"To die and leave no corpse, such is the way of the Garo…" it muttered, ignoring the question and taking out a bomb. The trio all ducked and covered themselves as the explosion went off, blowing their opponent to oblivion. A few seconds passed before they stood again.

"Flip the temple? What kind of hint is that, yeah?" Ashei grumbled.

"Hmm…" Rusl began to look around as Shad flipped through one of his many books.

"I wonder if that creature spoke of the four giants that protect Termina," the bookworm pondered. "In that case, that may be the voice we heard earlier,"

"But it said to free them, yeah? So they must be trapped somewhere," Ashei replied.

"Ashei," Rusl interrupted, pointing down from the edge of the platform to a decorative red jewel that was positioned on the open end of the path leading into the giant creepy head of a temple; the ledge they were next to. "That gem looks suspicious,"

"Hmm…mayhap it would react to magic of some sort?" Shad suggested. The bell tolled 10:30 in the distance.

"I would say that it would react to light, as most things in this region do," Rusl presumed. "Try a light arrow,"

"Okay, but don't blame me if you're wrong, yeah?" she aimed her bow and a light arrow was soon lodged in the gem. Suddenly, the world gave a lurch and turned upside down. The trio began to fall to the sky with cries of shock.

They shook their heads a second later, seeing that the area was now upside down and they were on the bottom of the platform from before. The decorative head on the outside of the temple now made a walkway inside.

"My heart is beating more hastily than a behind schedule carpenter!" Shad gasped, clutching his chest and sitting on the ground.

"What was that about, yeah?" Ashei shouted to the unresponsive temple.

"Apparently, certain parts of this place can't be reached unless it's upside down," Rusl commented, also exhibiting a few signs of shock.

"But, still!" the archer retorted as Shad slowly struggled to his trembling feet.

"M-My word! The sky is…b-below us!" he exclaimed, nearly falling over again. Luckily, Ashei was right behind him so he fell onto her. She caught him, but quickly stepped away. She would've pushed him flat on the ground, space allowing, but had to settle for this.

"Back off, yeah?" she warned.

"Y-Yes, of course," he agreed. "Let's venture inwards, shall we?"

So they hopped the gap, Shad very hesitant, and made their way into the upside-down temple. They immediately spotted a glowing insignia on the floor and headed along the narrow path to it, trying to ignore the sky underneath them.

"This insignia…" Rusl put his thumb and finger around his chin and examined it. "I wonder what it means,"

"It's the emblem of a heart-shaped face with staring eyes and bearing spikes around the edges," Shad observed. "Well, whatever the meaning, it is clear that this panel that bears the insignia is carries some sort of enchantment. Mayhap we should step on it?"

"Well, it's not like we have any other clues here, yeah?" Ashei added. They all stepped on the panel and there was a bright flash of light.

As their vision cleared, they realized that they were on a small platform of stone in the midst of a sandstorm in the middle of a desert.

"What? Where are we?" Rusl looked around, as did the others.

"We appear to have been transported to a desert," Shad replied.

"No, really?" Ashei scoffed.

"Oddly, enough, it doesn't feel like a desert," Shad continued, looking briefly annoyed, "If I had to hazard a guess, I would wager that we are still inside the temple and that this is a chamber within it, however dusty,"

"But why would there be such a chamber in this place?" Rusl pondered, squinting to see through the swirling sands. The ground suddenly began to rumble and a red worm with pincers and three eyes suddenly burst out of the ground and roared. They jumped back as it flew by, attempting to gore them.

"My word!" Shad exclaimed, whipping out his bestiary. Another worm burst out of the sand, this one was blue, and came at them. Ashei, acting quickly, fired a light arrow into its eye and made it careen away, screaming. "This must be the legendary duo of massive sand worms, Twinmold!" the bookworm shouted. "The only weak spots in their armor is the head and tail," The worms burrowed rapidly back under the sand as they had come, leaving the party to look warily for where they would come up next.

"We should keep moving," Rusl advised. "It'll make us harder to target,"

"Yeah, and get sand in every part of our clothing," Ashei grumbled as they hurried off into the sands, diving out of the way as the red worm came bursting out of the dirt. The archer quickly fired an arrow at it tail section as said section passed out of the ground and the worm screeched in pain, doubling around to shoot fireballs at the party. Rusl and Ashei rolled out of the way, not being able to jump in sand, but Shad summoned a shield of dirt, blocking the attack.

"Shall we learn of pain?" he said, moving his glowing hand in an odd pattern, making the sand shield become a shard of glass. "Take it!" He thrust his hand forward and the shard flew into the worm's eye. It flailed and roared in pain as its body exploded. The head crashed to the ground and stopped moving. Unfortunately, the blue worm still lived and burst up from under Rusl as he stood distracted.

"Blast it!" he shouted as it grabbed him in its pincers and flew off. He beat on its face with his sword, hurting it, but not badly enough to make it release him. Ashei shot an arrow coated with fire at its tail and it screeched, dropping him at last.

"Ha!" Shad clenched his glowing fist and it was caught in a wind trap. Of course, it wouldn't stay in it for long, as the bookworm quickly discovered as he strained to hold it. "Ashei!" he shouted, a few drops of sweat dripping down his face. "Shoot it in the eye!"

"Got it!" she replied, already racing that way as fast as the sand would allow. She stopped in a good position and fitted a light arrow to her bow. "Say your prayers!" The arrow soared through the air and pierced the worm in the eyes. It screeched and flailed in pain as she fitted a second arrow and shot it again, and again, and a fourth time, for good measure. The blue worm's body exploded as the roars continued and the head finally crashed to the ground.

"We did it," Rusl said, walking back up and wincing slightly with each step. "I'll feel this tomorrow, though,"

"Well, now what?" Ashei asked, looking around.

"Phew," Shad wiped his forehead with a handkerchief that he always had in his pocket. "Well, let's venture to the platform we arrived on, yes?" Sure enough, as they got closer to the stone platform in the middle of the arena, they could see a blue glow.

"Well, there's _something_ there," Rusl commented. Upon closer inspection, it was a ring of blue light. The bell tolled 11:00 outside.

"If our previous experience meant anything, then this should lead out," Shad deduced.

"Well, we'll see," Ashei stepped in first. The other two followed suit. There was a blue flash and they were gone.

They reappeared in an area with green bubbles floating by. They were standing on a stone platform that extended out of unseen depths.

"Oh, my, what's this, then?" Shad muttered, looking around.

"This place feels like…we shouldn't be here," Rusl marveled.

"Where are we? Hey, tell us where we are, yeah?" Ashei shouted off into the distance. Her voice echoed into silence. Suddenly, a voice answered. It moaned musically, as though speaking words, though they couldn't understand them. Then they suddenly heard the voice from before, speaking directly to their minds.

_We giants have guarded Termina since we created the four regions…_

"So you're one of the legendary giants, then?" Shad replied.

_Yes. But something evil is growing in power here again. Our powers are now as four sacred jewels, scattered about the land. But, still, only we know the answers that you seek._

"Then, tell us, why are the monsters growing in numbers? Where are the jewels?" Rusl inquired.

_You three need not worry after the jewels, they are already being hunted by six others, three want them for good, three for ill. You should concern yourself with freeing my brothers. Only by freeing us, will you learn…the…truth…_

The giant turned and began walking away.

"Wait! We still want to know more!" Rusl shouted after it, but they were blinded by a flash and found themselves back outside the temple, which was now right-side-up again.

"Well, that's a nuisance, make no mistake," Shad commented.

"Looks like we'll have to find the other giants, yeah?" Ashei complained.

"Unfortunately, it seems so," Rusl agreed. "But, right now, we must return to Clock Town and report our findings to the Mayor," The bell in the distance suddenly rang a half hour.

"Hmm, that's odd," Shad pulled out his pocket watch. "Well, I'll be tickled unto death, it's now 15:30," He put the watch away. "You don't suppose that the odd place in which we encountered the giant was an alternate dimension with a dissimilar passage of time?"

"Whatever," Ashei interrupted dismissively. "Let's just get back to town, yeah?"

They boarded the platform and rode it back down. Exiting the tower, they noticed an absence of enemies in the area and there was even a little girl out side the music box house, looking at the stream that flowed next to it. The house, they had quickly noticed, was now playing the most annoying music from the horns on the top of it. Ashei clutched her ears in severe annoyance at the tune.

"What in the depths of flaming crap is that?" she raged, making the girl below notice them and run back in the house, locking the door.

"I don't know, but I suppose it repels the undead," Shad deduced, looking a bit unhappy himself and beginning to get a headache too.

"Let's just get going," Rusl shouted over the noise as they waded the river and continued to the cliff edge.

As they reached it, now all sporting headaches, they barely heard the bell toll 16:00 in the city.

"Now, how to descend?" Shad thought aloud. "We cannot merely jump down, we would sorely injure ourselves," Ashei, who was now debating shooting a bomb arrow at the horns on the music box house, didn't reply.

"We can use the platform below as a starting point," Rusl responded, he too wishing to get away from the excessive racket. He jumped down first.

"Um, Ashei?" Shad said cautiously, tapping the irritated woman on the pauldron. She grabbed his arm and floored him.

"What the heck is it, yeah?" she shouted, veins pulsing at various spots on her face.

"Could you be so kind as to follow Rusl down to the ledge? Ow…" he moaned from his prone position.

"Oh…" she turned and looked down at the platform, where Rusl waved up at her, and jumped after him.

"Oh, goddesses…" Shad muttered, gingerly picking himself up and righting his glasses. "Why me?"

"Hurry it up!" Ashei's brusque voice shouted from below.

"Coming!" Shad shouted, going to the edge and stopping when he saw the short drop. "I'm not sure that I can make this fall without-"

"If you don't hurry up, I swear I will put an arrow and rope in your prissy leg and drag you down here, yeah?" the grumpy archer growled. Shad gulped and jumped off, knocking into Ashei, who knocked into Rusl, who dragged them all off the platform and down to hit the river painfully.

"Remind me to kick your butt later," Ashei snarled, squeezing water out of her two long, bound, pieces of hair that she wore hanging over the front of her shoulders.

"Now, now, Ashei. If you remember, you're the one that rushed him," Rusl attempted to placate her.

"Well, someone has to rush his prissy butt," she retorted, throwing him a glare as he looked in his bag to make sure his books were alright. Luckily, the bag was waterproof and they were all in there.

"Well, my manuscripts are safe and sound, so let us proceed in our endeavor of returning to town," the bookworm said. "I wish to dry these soaked garments, posthaste,"

"I'll give you posthaste…" Ashei grumbled under her breath as they set off again, crossing the grassy area in record time, and coming to the cliff. Ashei, not wishing to waste time this time, gave Shad a push as he started to protest.

"Ahhh!" he shouted as he fell, with a thump, to the ground below.

"Ashei," Rusl reprimanded.

"He had it coming, yeah?" she said defensively.

"I believe I have injured my arm," Shad whined from below as Rusl rolled his eyes at her. "It hurts badly," Rusl jumped down the cliff to check on him and Ashei just followed with no intention of checking on anything.

"You just bumped it when you landed," Rusl diagnosed, having seen worse injuries during training back home. "Give it a night,"

"Can we hurry this up? I'd like to be back before dark, yeah?" the archer rudely called from ahead. Rusl sighed.

"She's certainly a handful," Shad commented, standing up.

"That's one way to put it," Rusl replied.

The trip was fairly uneventful after that, as the monsters seemed to have not returned in their absence. They walked back into Termina Field, Shad now complaining about Ashei practically throwing him over the fence and Rusl red from yelling at her and she looking rather miffed and eager to punch the first person that gave her an excuse.

"Halt!" the guard at the east gate said. "No suspicious persons in the town. Please show a pass if you wish to enter,"

"Here you are," Rusl pulled the paper out and showed it to the guard.

"All right, you're free to go," the guard stood aside and let them in.

"Now, on to the Mayor's Residence," Rusl said to the others.

"Indeed," Shad agreed. Ashei gave a humph. The bell tolled 17:00 in the background.

"Oh, you're back," the secretary said with a giggle. "Mayor Dotour is free right now and has been expecting you. Go on in," So they did. Viscen was standing next to the Mayor's desk, obviously waiting for them, too.

"Team Eye, welcome back," Dotour greeted them. "What did you discover in Ikana Canyon?"

"Well…" Rusl began.

"That's quite a tale," he said when the story ended. "So you three need to go find the giants to find out what's going on lately?"

"It seems so," Shad replied.

"If it were possible, I would send soldiers to the regions to aid in the investigation," Viscen interjected. "Unfortunately, our ranks are still not big enough to do much more than guard Clock Town. I must place my faith in you," He threw them a silver rupee. "I recommend going north, to Snowhead, next. The Gorons have sent word that the temperatures have been declining there lately, to the point where snow is returning and making it difficult to defend against monster attacks,"

"We will pay you another 200 rupees when you return," Dotour added. "You are free to-" A guard came bursting in, suddenly, screaming his head off.

"Captain! There's three suspicious-looking warriors at the north gate, demanding entrance! They have no pass!" the guard shouted frantically. "They're getting violent!"

"Come on!" Rusl ran out of the office, followed by Ashei.

"But we don't even…oh, bother!" Shad stifled his own protest and followed.

"I have an idea who they are," Rusl replied as Shad caught up, apparently having heard the earlier protest. As they passed through the gates, the trio the guard had mentioned came into view. A green-skinned man with red hair, a mage in blue with a matching hat, and a man in a red tunic with periwinkle hair.

"It _is_ you!" Rusl exclaimed.

"So you've awakened Knil and are planning something then?" Shad added, also recognizing the three villains from previous adventures and stories they'd heard.

"We won't let you bring your evil schemes in here, yeah?" Ashei whipped out her bow and fired a shot at the man in red. He gave a humph and dodged it easily, making Ashei grimace in annoyance.

"So you want to play?" the man replied impassively, drawing his two-handed sword. The guard that had been trying to restrain them fled as Knil and Rusl rushed at each other. Their blades rang each time they met before Rusl finally pivot-jumped over Knil and landed on the ridge behind him. Knil mimicked him and fired a volley of dark energy blasts as he fell, blinding Rusl with the explosions. Before he could clear his eyes, he took a blunt blow to the face and flipped backwards. Recovering with a handspring, his feet slid to a stop in front of the fountain as Knil rushed him with a fierce combo, which he deflected skillfully but with effort.

In the meantime, Shad jumped back a couple of times as the wind mage sent a barrage of wind spells at him. As they burst against the ground, Shad opened his journal and held up a glowing hand, summoning chunks of the ground into the air and hurling them at Vaati. He spun out of the way with a chuckle and unleashed another salvo of wind spells. One struck the nearby wooden slide and it burst asunder, sending splinters flying in every direction. Vaati flew aside as Shad rolled to avoid the dangerous shrapnel. As Shad got back on his feet, though, the Ganondorf flew at him at high speeds.

"Oh-" he was cut off as he was decked across the face with incredible force and spun 720 degrees on his feet before spinning 1080 more on the ground and crashed into a wall, KO'd on impact. Unfortunately for Vaati, Ganondorf had dropped his attention on trying to shoot Ashei when he attacked Shad and a flurry of arrows caught the wind mage, pinning him to a wall on the other side of the area and sealing his magic, temporarily.

"Blast!" he shouted, struggling ineffectively. Ashei followed up by shooting a light arrow at the Gerudo King, but he flipped sideways to avoid it and stomped hard as he landed, making the ground buckle all around him and forcing her to lose her footing and fall down. He jumped in the air and dropped rapidly towards her, his extended fist surrounded by dark energy. Right before impact, she rolled aside and thrust a foot into his stomach, using his own momentum against him. Spit flew from his mouth as his eyes widened in shock. The archer fitted quickly fitted another light arrow to her bow and firing it into the red jewel on his forehead. He went spiraling away with a cry of rage and she jumped out of the way before he crashed down, out of the fight. She glanced over to where Rusl was holding off Knil and took aim.

Knil dodged and blocked every move that Rusl tried. He was completely outclassed, he realized, as the man finally locked blades with him and sneered, gathering a ball of energy in his left hand. Rusl, too late, tried to jump out of the way and received the attack in the face at point-blank. He flew backwards with a cry, slamming hard into the wall that was part of the entrance to the great fairy fountain, and saw nothing else.

Angry, Ashei shot a shaft at him, but he moved his head back and it missed. He looked over at her as she started firing rapidly at him, varying between fire, ice, and light arrows. He jumped, turned, and sidestepped every one of them as he walked down the upper path and towards her. She grimaced in frustration and anger as every shot missed repeatedly. Abruptly, she heard the sound of arrows shattering to her right and was suddenly buffeted by wind projectiles. She caught sight of Vaati as he summoned a cyclone to slice her with wind blades.

_Crap…he broke out of my seal. _she thought irately as invisible blades of air slashed her body. Several cuts appeared in her pants, shirt, arms, one cut across her face. It didn't help that it was making her dizzy at the same time, swinging her around at high speeds. Finally, the winds released her and she saw a wall coming at her rapidly before blissful oblivion.

_

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_

**And that's the end of chapter 2. It seems that there's a lot of stuff here that can be interpreted as AsheixShad but I say that its easy to see what you want to (not saying that Ashei and Shad wouldn't make an amusing/cute couple). I don't plan to have romance but there is an odd friendship between team members, to be sure. Be sure to give feedback on what you liked/disliked so that I know how I'm doing. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	7. Team Eye Level 3

**And here we have the third chapter with my other favorite team. The standard adventure federation rules do not apply! And I still own nothing...**

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Level 3

Shad was first aware of pain as he awoke. His face felt like it had been hit with a lead weight, and all of his limbs were in an awkward position under him. It didn't help that there was something on top of him.

_I wonder if I've been buried? _he thought. _Wouldn't surprise me in the least._ He slowly opened his eyes to see red. He started to panic a little, but it was just Ashei's leg…_ Ashei's leg!_ He scrambled out from under her, fueled by adrenaline, ignoring the protests from his aching and stiff body. She rolled off of him and landed, face-first, in the dirt.

"Looks like you guys are okay," Viscen said from nearby, making the bookworm give a jump. "As soon as the medic gets here, we'll give you some medicine,"

"Oh, very good, then," Shad replied, turning Ashei back over and examining her cuts. _She really took the bullet, so to speak. We'll have to shell out rupees for clothes repair now, but, alas, it cannot be helped._ "How's Rusl?" Shad asked. Viscen looked over to where two other guards were carrying the swordsman carefully over.

"Not much better than you, but at least you three are alive," the captain replied.

"I'm here, sir!" a guard with a bag, which bore a red cross on it, came running up. Shad was immediately handed a vial of red potion as the medic crouched to tend to Ashei. "Looks like she's taken a number," he commented, tipping her head back and pouring another vial of red potion down her throat. Shad shuddered at the bitter taste of the herbal concoction as he downed his own medicine. The medic set the archer gently back down on the ground and went over to administer first aid to Rusl as Ashei began to stir.

"Ashei, are you all right?" Shad asked, keeping a reasonable distance as she opened her eyes slightly.

"Feel like I've been through a meat slicer," she grumbled, sitting up on her elbows and examining the damage to her outfit.

"Good to see you're better," Viscen commented. "But you and the swordsman will need some rest before you can be up and about again,"

"That is certain," Shad agreed, looking over at Rusl as he sat up, clutching his head and muttering.

"You all should be fine," the medic informed them as he and a couple of guards escorted them back to the Stock Pot Inn. "Get plenty of rest tonight and you should be up by tomorrow,"

"Yes, thank you," Rusl nodded as they came to the inn's entrance. The team entered the building, leaving their escort behind, and saw a trio in the lobby, speaking with the innkeeper.

"Oh, there they are now, Kafei," Anju looked at them. The trio turned, as well, to face them. A man in a green tunic and matching hat, a mage in gray robes with blonde hair and red eyes, and a purple-haired man in purple, they were.

"Link," Rusl said at once, recognizing his former apprentice and friend.

"Rusl," Link came forward and helped him as he wobbled slightly. "We heard about the intruders earlier," The bell tolled 18:00 in the background as a wolf howled.

**Night of the First Day**

"Yes, they were quite formidable," Shad interjected, glancing at how Ashei looked like she was about to keel over just as much as Rusl, though she hid it as well as she could. "But we should relocate to environs of more comfort,"

"Yes, of course," Link agreed, helping Rusl towards the stairs as Lucius offered to help Ashei. She, naturally, refused and batted his arm aside, but he seemed unperturbed and followed her up the stairs, making sure she didn't fall.

"Good night, Anju," Kafei kissed her hand and gave a small smile before following his comrades. Anju smiled after him for a while before she noticed that Shad was still in the room.

"Yes, Mr. Shad?" she asked, blushing slightly from being seen smiling so sappily after her husband.

"I have payment for our rent," the bookworm replied, handing over the silver rupee, which he'd palmed from Rusl's pocket.

"Okay," Anju took it. "That's 200 at fifty per night, so that's four days off of the 334 you owe me for,"

"334!" Shad repeated. "I hadn't realized that we've tread so callously on your hospitality for so long!"

"No, no. I don't mind you three being here, but shouldn't you go look for a house?" Anju replied. "With the money you owe me, you could get a one-floor house with enough room for the three of you and extra rooms for your detective business,"

"Perhaps so," Shad shrugged. "But we'll need to pay off our debts to you, firstly," He headed for the stairs.

"Good night," she called after him.

"And you too, good lady," he gave a courteous bow. He headed quickly up the stairs and down the hall to room 5. He noticed, passing room 2, that it sounded like there were guests there now, but decided not to pry.

Rusl, lying on his bed, had just finished relaying the story as Shad walked in.

"Why is Knil with Vaati and Ganondorf?" Link pondered aloud.

"Why indeed?" Lucius replied. "When last I checked, Knil was sealed in the mountains between Ikana Canyon and Snowhead,"

"It's quite possible that they released him from confinement," Shad added in.

"Well, its of little consequence, as long as we obtain the jewels before they do," Kafei commented quietly. "They, after all, are likely the target of this group of villains,"

"Well, Rusl, we'll let you get some rest," Link said abruptly, heading for the door. "You have a long road ahead if you're freeing giants,"

"We need our rest, as well," Kafei agreed. "As we head to the swamp tomorrow,"

"Allow me to aid your healing before we go," Lucius requested, holding his staff aloft. "_O Goddess of Wisdom, heal mine allies of their wounds!_" Three streams of blue light flew from his staff, one at a time, and struck each of the team mates. Each one glowed blue after being struck and then their wounds were gone, along with some vigor restored. Ashei grunted a bit and rolled over in her sleep, having fallen asleep the moment she'd arrived. Team Link left after that and Rusl lied down to sleep as well. Shad took a book out of his bag and sat down at the table. Ending his day with contented reading, as he often did.

**Dawn of the Second Day**

The bells awoke Rusl the next morning, chiming the beginning of a new day. He sat up and stretched, his muscles still a bit stiff from the beating the previous day, despite healing magic and magic medicine. He looked over at Ashei and saw that she was sleeping facedown, her armor piled a bit clumsily at the foot of her bed, with her bow propped by it, as Link had been the one to remove it the previous night so that her bedding wouldn't be shredded. Shad was asleep on his book again, which was no surprise. The swordsman rolled out of bed and strapped on his sword sheath, looking out the window at the new day. Sure, they would be venturing to Snowhead later today, but that couldn't stop him from enjoying the quiet moments of-

"Wha?" Shad snorted, sitting up and pulling a page off of his face, where it had stuck. "Morning already?"

"Yes, good morning, Shad," Rusl replied.

"And the same to you," he said groggily, standing and stretching, his joints popping. He looked at Ashei. "It's your turn to awaken the "princess" this morn,"

"She'd kill you if she heard that," Rusl chuckled, going over to the woman.

"I believe that," Shad shuddered at the thought.

"Ashei," Shad shook her gently. She snorted and tried to punch him. Luckily, he and Shad were used to this every morning and he dodged it. "Ashei! Shad's dancing on your armor!"

"What?" she jumped up and grabbed her bow, fitting an arrow menacingly as she looked around for the bookworm, who'd dived under the table the second she'd started to yell. "I'll kill him this time, yeah?"

"Rusl, why'd you have to bring me into this?" Shad whined from his hiding place.

"Relax, I was kidding," Rusl stayed her wrathful hand. She gave him a glare and put her bow back down.

"That was a dirty trick, yeah?" she grumbled as Anju knocked on the door with breakfast.

"Come in," Rusl called. She did so and put their meal down, smiled, and left. Shad slowly came out of hiding to sit down to the meal with the others.

"You know, I pity the man that must partake of this and pretend to be fond of it," Shad commented idly, toying with his eggs.

"This bacon is wet, yeah?" Ashei added, looking at it apprehensively. "How does _that _happen?"

"Well, chin up and chow down. We must away soon if we wish to be back come nightfall," Rusl said in a leader-like way. Ashei grumbled under her breath and choked the fare down. Shad, being practiced at being a gentleman, kept a polite smile as he ate the horrible food.

The bell tolled 07:00 as they left the inn. Rusl now immensely worried to find out that they owed a little over 16,000 rupees on the rent.

"How are we going to pay that off?" he sighed.

"That's why we should stop staying at the inn, yeah?" Ashei said brusquely.

"Well, we shall cross that viaduct upon arrival at it," Shad gave a shrug. "Let us put our focus upon our current assignment,"

"Right…" Rusl nodded, leading the way to North Clock Town, after a quick stop at a tailor shop, which took 30 minutes or so.

"Hey, free-lance people," Tim greeted them as they passed by. "I hear ya got into a mighty big fight here, yesterday," he gestured at the impact marks on the walls and ground and the remains of the slide.

"Yes, we did," Rusl replied. "Although it was a bit over our heads, so to speak,"

"Well, ya win some, ya lose some, right?" Tim shrugged. "By the way, can Miss Lady pop this balloon?" He pointed at the blue balloon above, which was tethered by a rope.

"Well, Ashei? Shall we humor him?" Shad asked, looking at her. She looked rather impassive, but a pinch of annoyance could be seen.

"Fine, whatever," she roughly agreed, whipping out her bow and piercing the balloon easily with a pop.

"Cool!" Tim jumped up and down. "I'll give you the rope," He untied it and handed it over.

"That's not really-" Rusl began, trying to give it back.

"That's okay, I won't need it without a balloon, anyway, and I can only get one a month," Tim reassured them. "See ya!" He waved and ran off to South Clock Town. Rusl watched him go and shrugged with a sigh. Turning, he handed the rope to Ashei.

"Here's your new rope," he declared. She gave a humph and was about to decry the quality, but stowed it away anyway.

They continued over to the north gate and the guard stopped them.

"So you're off to Snowhead?" he asked.

"Yes," Rusl replied.

"Well, I won't stop you, but be careful out there," he stepped aside and allowed them to head down the steps and into the powdery snow that now coated the northern part of the field.

"It's just as the Captain forewarned," Shad commented, watching the white flakes fly by and land on their clothing and hair. "It is most wintry here, and we have yet to come to the mountain's foothills,"

"Indeed," Rusl agreed, looking to the gray clouds above. "This bodes ill,"

"You think the temple in this area has something to do with this as well?" Ashei asked.

"Probably," Shad deduced. Continuing on down the hills to where the foothills began, they soon encountered a pair of dodongos. "If I recall correctly," Shad whispered as they hid behind an outcropping. "These creatures breathe fire," he pulled out his bestiary. "They are covered with strong armor, but are only vulnerable at the tail or to an explosion on the inside. But you would have to force a bomb down their throat or some-" The two had left as he ended the standard explanation and started into his shtick. "Hey!" he exclaimed, heading forward to help. Twin streams of fire shot at Rusl and Ashei, forcing them to dodge out of the way. Ashei, being a good shot, nailed one of the foe's tail with an ice arrow, making it roar in annoyance and spin at her.

The other continued to stalk Rusl, but Shad already had his journal open and said some words in an old language as he held his glowing hand by his left temple. The snow morphed under the dodongo and trapped its legs as it breathed fire at Rusl.

Ashei kept her cool as the angry dodongo inhaled to exhale flames at her and shot a bomb arrow down its gullet. The monster started to choke and then the bomb went off with a muffled explosion. Smoke poured from its mouth as it fell over with a thud. Satisfied, Ashei went over to where Rusl had just dodged the stream of fire that had been loosed at him. Ashei shot the other monster's tail with an ice arrow, making it roar in protest and attempt to turn, straining against Shad's bonds. The bookworm started to sweat a little with the effort, but the ice shackles held up. Ashei pelted the tail with two more ice arrows, each time the dodongo protested and tried to turn to counter its attacker, but Shad managed to hold it down, although it drained his magic strength. Finally, Rusl decided that he best finish it off himself and leapt into the air, performing a finishing stab to the tail. The monster finally screeched its last and collapsed with smoke billowing out of its mouth. Shad released his spell and allowed the snow to go back to normal.

"Phew…" he fell to his knees. "That was a trial, make no mistake,"

"Here," Rusl said after coming over to him, handing over one of their 4 precious vials of green potion. He downed it and immediately felt his magic power surge back to him.

"I'll admit that you have some use to us in a battle," Ashei commented, turning away to look up at Snowhead. "But I could've taken those without your little traps, yeah?"

"You're welcome," Shad replied, as though she had thanked him conventionally, or at all, as he attempted to get the bitter taste of the potion out of his mouth. The archer gave a humph in reply.

"Yes, yes, we all live in harmony," Rusl commented. "Now how shall we deal with this?" he pointed to the wall of giant stalagmites, which Ashei had been eyeing.

"I suppose that fire magic, or fire arrows, would allow us past this. Am I correct, Ashei?" Shad looked at her stoic face.

"Don't see why not," she shrugged, taking aim and shooting a fire arrow at the ice. It melted away rapidly after impact, steaming as it did so, until they could see the path up.

"Holy Goddesses!" was Shad's comment as he saw the blizzard up ahead and felt the wind as it was channeled through the path up the mountain. "How are we supposed to traverse that?"

"You'll have to follow me," Ashei replied, pulling a white furry parka out of her satchel and putting in over her upper body.

"How long have you had that?" Rusl asked, not recalling seeing it before.

"I never go anywhere without it," she answered. "After being trained in the mountains for many years, I have learned to always be prepared for adverse weather," Shad looked at the mass amounts of snow ahead, again, and gave a sigh of resignation.

"Off we go, then," he said with false enthusiasm.

As they went up the foothills, it became obvious that they wouldn't have an easy time trekking. The snow was up to their knees already. Ashei, having donned her insulated yeti mask that matched her parka, was fine against the gales. It could be assumed that her pants were cold-resistant or something, too, for her legs weren't really too cold, either. Shad, on the other hand, was used to the temperate city, where the worst cold weather was a light blanket of snow on the streets and rooftops and was easily chased away by a warm blanket, a fire, and some warm tea. Rusl fared no better as he trudged along, his arms, like Shad's, wrapped around him for warmth. Rusl was from a relatively warm region and, even in winter, the woods he often explored and trained in didn't get too cold, and they rarely saw snow. All in all, the group was going to develop hypothermia or something if they didn't solve this problem soon. As they heard the clock toll 08:00 in the distance, mocking the cold they were enduring with the warmth it enjoyed, they came to a wall of snowballs. Ashei didn't wait for complaints and just melted them with a fire arrow. Unfortunately, this awoke a White Wolfos that was sleeping under the snow. Luckily, Ashei saw it coming and twanged a fire arrow in its throat as well. For ten more grueling minutes, they trudged on, passing a sign that they couldn't be troubled to read right now, and, finally, they came to a clearing that had a pine tree here and there. The blizzard lightened up a little for long enough that they could see a large house with smoke coming out of the chimney.

"Sh-Shall we p-proc-ceed to th-that house?" Shad asked, now sporting a beard of packed snow and a white fro. Ashei noticed that her companions were freezing and nodded her acquiescence. Ten more painful minutes of cold later, a slightly blue Rusl, a snow-covered and blue Shad, and a parka-clad Ashei arrived at the door and she gave a knock. The door was opened by a smiling guy with squinty eyes. Seeing the yeti mask, he almost closed the door, but Ashei, thinking and acting fast, stuck her foot in the door and pulled the mask off, revealing her glum face.

"Would you mind lettin' us in? We're freezing, yeah?" she said brusquely.

"Oh, right. Come in," he opened the door and allowed her to walk in and her frozen companions to shuffle in.

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**Ooh, cliffhanger. Yes, it was stupid to have a lack of proper garb when going up a frozen mountain, but I guess my excuse is that they're too broke to buy parkas or anything of the sort. Besides, then I wouldn't be able to do certain scenes if they were adequately prepared (mwa, ha, ha). Don't be afraid to review, now. Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	8. Team Eye Level 4

**Here is the other half of the Snowhead adventure. Warning: giant mechanical monsters and extended use of parkas are in this chapter. I own nothing!**

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Level 4

Shad and Rusl immediately spotted the warm furnace and made for it. Suddenly, the building's other occupant, a giant guy in a creepy iron head mask thing, wielding a large hammer, yelled some gibberish at them with more volume than necessary. Rusl managed to take a step back and put a hand to his hilt, but Shad just fell down from attempting the action of dodging.

"Pipe down!" the squinty guy shouted at the giant guy. The giant guy grunted and went to sit in a corner. "Sorry about that. He's my assistant, but not good with words," Rusl dragged Shad over to the furnace and they both began to defrost. "So what brings you to this forge in the middle of a deadly blizzard?"

"We were heading to the temple, but I guess we didn't think it would be so cold," Ashei replied, glancing at her allies as the snow melted off of them.

"Not having the proper protection can kill you in weather like this," the blacksmith nodded. "Yo, assistant! Get out some parkas for these guys!" The assistant made an extended grunt and walked up the stairs, to use a general term. They heard a lot of banging and things falling upstairs before he finally came back down and thrust two old, dusty parkas at the smith. They looked similar to Ashei's, but were obviously way older and the masks that were included weren't made to look like a yeti face.

"Well," he beat some of the dust off and handed them over. "Here you go. Think of them as a gift from me. I don't need 'em, anyway. Got twelve more around here, somewhere," Ashei gave a grunt of gratitude as the smith went over to fix some hot tea with the furnace, using some contraption he'd come up with to suspend the teapot without melting it, as the furnace was too tall to put the pot on top of and such an action would likely melt the pot anyway.

About twenty minutes, some rations, and some hot tea later, Shad and Rusl were finally thawed enough to come over and examine the parkas that had been proffered.

"Ah, very soft," Shad commented before donning his. "And incredibly warm, as well. What fur is this garment composed of?"

"White Wolfos," Ashei replied nonchalantly. Shad paused in his admiration of the clothing and looked at her, wondering if she was kidding or not.

"That would make sense," Rusl interjected, wearing his own parka now. "White Wolfos have thick fur to keep warm in these conditions,"

"So this really is White Wolfos fur?" Shad asked, not sure whether to be put off or not.

"Duh. What did you think it was, yeah?" Ashei taunted. "Yeti fur?" Shad, apparently, _had _thought that after looking at her mask, but decided not to voice this fact.

"Well, thank you for your hospitality," Rusl gave a nod to the smith. "But we must reach the temple by the day's end,"

"Well, if you're going up there, be careful. This blizzard is one of the worst I've ever seen," the smith warned. The giant guy gave a loud, extended groan as well and forced a thermos of soup at Rusl. "Oh, and my assistant gives you his regards, too, apparently," The assistant growled at this comment and, presumably, gave the smith a glare at suggesting the notion that he was a barbaric Neanderthal.

"My word, I do wish that my clothing needn't suffer further abuse," Shad complained, looking at his soaked garments, after putting away his map.

"Suck it up, city boy, yeah?" Ashei retorted, re-donning her mask and heading back to the door. A chill wind whipped in as she opened the portal to the cold, outside world, causing the smith to shudder and wrap his arms around himself and the giant guy to give a protest. Rusl and Shad donned their own masks, after beating the dust off, and followed her out, allowing the door to shut behind them.

Shad pulled out a compass as they stepped outside and looked for which way northwest was. Rusl put away his helmet, having chosen to replace it with the mask, rather than wear the two at once.

"It's this way," Shad pointed. Ashei gave a shrug, though her expression could have shown anything, and headed off that way. Rusl followed, his sword gripped firmly in hand, waiting for any enemy onslaught, as did Shad, staying between the two with his compass out, making sure they kept on track. After about five minutes, they arrived at the narrow path that led up towards the temple. Shad put away his compass as they pressed on. The bell tolled once for 08:30 as they came to an area where the path widened again. Shad walked forward a little, looking around, but failed to see the abyss that occupied a good part of the area. He stumbled a little at the edge as Ashei darted forward and grabbed his arm, hauling him back.

"You might wanna be a little more careful, yeah?" she scolded, sounding annoyed.

"My apologies," Shad replied, a little shaken. "I suppose I should allow the expert to show us the way,"

"Yes, we don't want to fall down there, that's for sure," Rusl agreed, looking over to the wooden ramp nearby. "Ashei, how do we get over these ramps?"

"Well, a Goron would roll," Ashei replied, as though it were obvious.

"And we shall…?" Shad added. Ashei shrugged.

"Unless you can make platforms of air or stone, we won't be able to cross these gaps," she said bluntly.

"Well, perhaps I can," he flipped open his journal and looked through it. "Yes, I think that this is actually meant as a trap, but I believe that it can be used for other purposes, given the proper procedure," He held up his hand and it started to glow. Rusl and Ashei took a precautionary step backwards. Improvisational magic was always a bit dangerous; heck, normal magic was a bit dangerous. Shad chanted words in an arcane language and a large shard of stone jutted out of the rock wall, within the gap they needed to cross.

"That should do it," Rusl observed. "I'll test it first," he went forward, up the ramp, and tapped the new outcropping with his foot. It didn't budge, so he slowly stepped on it, to the same effect. He, then, crept across it, wary for any shifts in its integrity. None presented themselves by the other side, and Rusl stepped safely on the other side, though he was surprised by a giant snowball that rolled into the gap ahead.

"It's safe," he called back. Ashei took this as enough confirmation and went quickly across. Shad headed up the rear, being extra careful so that he wouldn't accidentally release the spell. Had he read the book more thoroughly, he would know that this spell was designed to do this as a secondary use, and wouldn't release without a counter-spell. "We best be careful after the next gap," Rusl warned. "There are large snowballs rolling down the path,"

"Great…" Ashei muttered sarcastically. Another spell later, they were able to cross the other gap. Of course, another snowball came rolling down the ridge and tried to flatten them, but Ashei put it in its place by melting it with a fire arrow.

At last, they came to the temple's vicinity. The blizzard was worse in this area than anywhere and, to make the going even tougher, the only way to the temple was a narrow, icy path over a deep chasm.

"This is a mighty pickle," Shad noted, looking upon the situation at hand as the clock tolled 09:00.

"On the bright side," Rusl pointed to the barely-visible red marker flag flapping in the wind ahead. "Someone put markers down, so we shouldn't lose the path too easily," Ashei gave a humph and proceeded carefully to the first flag, careful to not let the constantly shifting winds blow her skyward. At length, she put a hand to the thick and firm pole that the flag was tied to and looked back for the others. They made decent headway, but Shad, as usual, she rolled her eyes, was being the most cautious of all. It wasn't like she disapproved of caution, but she always felt an urge to get the city boy to loosen up when it came to adventuring. She knew, firsthand, that over-caution was, basically, hesitation, and could get you killed. Her thoughts were interrupted as a large snowball smashed into the flagpole and fell apart. Luckily, her hands were armored, so it didn't really hurt. The other two showed up a couple of seconds later.

"We may have another obstacle," she warned as Shad too showed up, coated in snow like the rest of them. "Snowballs are rolling down the path,"

"There's no way to dodge them in such a small space," Rusl replied, shouting over the gale.

"If we're fast enough, they'll shatter on the flagpole," Ashei explained.

"Hurry? In this weather, on this path? You're mad!" Shad objected.

"Can it and follow me, yeah?" the archer snapped. Another snowball smashed into the flagpole, so that was their cue. She trudged off as fast as was wise, Rusl and a still protesting Shad on her heels. They reached the next marker flag as the previous snowball missed and the next one hit the pole. She took off again, but, this time, there was a steep ramp in the way.

"Shad!" Rusl shouted. "Can you make this passable?"

"I can try!" he replied, hurrying forward as a snowball crashed to the ground behind them and smashed into the flag. He pulled out his journal and gripped it tightly as he located the proper spell and began chanting. The snow on the ramp morphed and became a set of stairs, which they climbed, before he released the spell and it became a ramp again. Their triumph was interrupted by several howls as no less than a dozen White Wolfos burst out of the snow and rushed at them. A wall of snow sprang up in front of the two that were nearest Shad, causing them to crash and hurt themselves. Ashei pivot-jumped over the two rushing at her and nailed both with a fire arrow. Rusl gracefully dodged to the side and sliced one cleanly along the side before dodging the other way and doing the same to a second. Shad, after stopping his two, summoned multiple stalagmites from under them and speared them, killing them instantly. This battle over, the trio began the long trek up the winding path that led into the temple. A snowball came rolling at them, once in a while, but Ashei melted them without really breaking stride. Finally, they reached the temple entrance, hearing the bell faintly toll 10:00 in the distance, and stepped inside.

"At least its not a blizzard in here too, yeah?" Ashei commented, taking off her mask in the lobby.

"Indeed," Shad agreed, removing his as well. "Now, we should proceed to the large monster that resides here, forthwith," Rusl removed his mask as well and replaced his helmet. They still wore their parkas, though, as the temple wasn't exactly toasty warm.

"Here is the panel," the leader pointed out the glowing panel with the same emblem as the last. "Are we ready?"

"Yes, we are in good condition and have…plenty of healing…medicine?" Shad's words were interrupted periodically as he searched the medicine satchel. "Did not we have four blue potions?"

"Yeah," Ashei replied. "Why?"

"Well, there are only three here and we haven't used one…" he closed the bag and looked contemplatively at the floor. At length, Rusl spoke.

"If it's gone, it's gone," he said. "Let's just defeat the temple boss and free the giant,"

"You're correct," Shad nodded.

"Whatever," Ashei added as they stepped into the portal and were teleported to a circular room with a pillar in the middle so that it was more of a circular tunnel.

"What in Termina is that?" Shad pointed to a massive, frozen, four-legged creature that appeared to be made of armor and cogs.

"You're the one with the bestiary, yeah?" Ashei reminded him in her impolite tones.

"Oh, yes…" he pulled out the book and looked up the monster. "This is Goht, Masked, Mechanical Monster," he read. "Apparently, it runs the circuit of its lair until it runs down its foe,"

"That doesn't sound too hard," Rusl replied. "It'll be like wrangling goats,"

"Not necessarily," Shad held up a finger. "It can also fire bombs, lightning bolts from its horn, and shake rocks from the ceiling," They looked up and, sure enough, the rocks on the ceiling looked loose enough to fall.

"Well, we better get started, then," Ashei said, aiming a fire arrow.

"But we haven't a strategy-" Shad began to protest, but the ice was already melting and the monster began to buck in an agitated way before racing off down the hall, cogs whirling.

"I do," she replied. "You guys distract it or hold it or whatever and I'll shoot it. Simple, yeah?" It came racing by and they all jumped out of the way a split second none too soon. Rusl and Shad went rushing off to meet the monster face-to-face and, not too long later, met it sooner than they would have liked.

"Oh-" Shad was cut off as it gored him and slammed him into a wall. Rusl rolled out of the way and sliced its leg. This minor annoyance made it counter with a fork of lightning that arced from its horn and struck behind it. The swordsman jumped back just in time and it left a black mark on the floor.

"Shad!" he dashed over and pulled a vial of blue potion out of the bag.

"I blundered…" he gasped.

"Here, drink this," Rusl forced the potion into his mouth.

Meanwhile, Goht was looking back forward after shooting the lightning at Rusl, but something suddenly exploded against its shoulder, causing a few gears to fly. It roared in irritation and several rocks fell from the ceiling. Ashei rolled out of the way and fired another bomb arrow as it started up again. The blow caused more damage, but didn't break its stride. Ashei dived out of the way as it raced by with a rumbling that loosened rocks as it passed.

Rusl and Shad were ready as it came by again. When it got to a certain point, Shad unleashed his trap and the rock underfoot surged up to trap its legs. Rusl sprang up onto a wall and onto its back, hacking away at its gears as it roared and shot lightning in random directions. A rock suddenly fell towards Rusl but a bomb arrow hit it and it exploded harmlessly. Ashei had just raced onto the scene and aimed another explosive arrow at the monster, nailing it in the chest. Furious, the monster released a bomb from a hidden hatch and the bonds on its legs were blown asunder, freeing it.

"Oh, bother!" Shad ducked as it tried to slam its head into him, causing it to hit the wall, instead. Rusl hung on, sword driven deep into its back, as it rampaged in zigzags, down the hall. Ashei fired another bomb arrow and then fled up the tunnel. Finally, Goht charged into a wall and collapsed. Rusl wrenched out his sword and jumped clear as a cascade of rocks fell on top of the defeated monster.

"Whew…" Shad wiped his forehead with his handkerchief as they gathered near the exit portal. "That was rough, but we gave it the old one-two,"

"Now, let's hear what this giant has to say," Rusl said, leading the way into the portal.

Once again, they were in the strange dimension, and another, similar-looking, giant stood in the distance.

_Thank you…I am the second giant you have freed._

"Tell us, every region has seen troubles, the likes of which haven't been seen for years. Why?" Rusl asked.

_The imprisonment of us giants. Something evil has revived the masked guardians of the four temples. The guardians use our powers for ill. A polluted swamp, a frozen mountain, a contaminated sea, and a haunted kingdom. Two of us you have freed. Ocean…Swamp…those two remain…_

The giant turned and walked away and they found themselves outside the temple. They looked around in wonder at the sudden absence of the blizzard, or cold in general.

"Spring has come," Shad observed, pulling off his parka and letting the beams of sun hit his body.

"So Goht was causing a terrible winter…" Rusl said thoughtfully. "And, if we take the giant's words into account, I would say that the Great Bay is contaminated, somehow, and the Southern Swamp has been polluted,"

"Well, one step at a time, yeah?" Ashei replied flippantly. "Let's just head back to town," The bell tolled 14:00 in the city.

"Once again, the giants' realm has stolen some of our time," Shad observed.

"All the more reason for us to go," Rusl nodded. So they headed down the path, parkas stored away, and encountered a few Wolfos at the bottom. Rusl and Ashei easily shot and cut them down and they continued down the slope and over the chasm.

"We're making much better time than before," Shad mentioned as they passed the bridged gaps. He did wonder why they were still bridged, but decided not to say anything. The bell tolled 14:30 when they finally returned to the area where the smithy was. Unlike before, however, it was now a lush, green plain with pools of water at the west and northern ends.

"I like this place much better now," Rusl commented. "The fresh air and warm sun is…comforting," Though Ashei wouldn't admit it, this was why she liked mountains too. They continued through the area, listening to the frogs croaking and birds singing.

"Hey! I see you were successful!" the smith called from his smithy, waving at them.

"Indeed we were!" Shad replied, leading the group over to speak with him.

"Well, thank you for driving the blizzard away. I was getting a touch of cabin fever in there with only my assistant for company," a loud grunt came from inside the building as he said this.

"You are most certainly welcome," Shad said conversationally. Ashei cleared her throat and gave him an impatient look. "But we must return to Clock Town now and report,"

"Feel free to come by any time," the smith said as they started off again.

"We would be glad to," Rusl nodded.

"Why must interrupt every good conversation I get into?" Shad complained as they started down the foothills.

"'Cause you'll yap on for hours, yeah?" Ashei replied brusquely.

"As much as I disagree with her methods, she is right," Rusl added. "We're on a job right now. You can come back here and talk when we're free,"

"We're never free…" he muttered under his breath.

They arrived back in Termina Field a little after 16:00. Fortunately, no more dodongos had decided to show up and they went, unimpeded, up the hill and towards the north gate.

"Halt!" the guard held out a hand. "No one is allowed in without a pass!" Rusl showed the pass. "You may enter," the guard let them in.

"It is a bit dull going through the same routine everyday," Shad commented as they entered and headed down the road towards the gate to East Clock Town.

"Yes, but it is for security reasons," Rusl sighed. It was 17:00 when they entered the Mayor's Residence.

"You can, like, go in," the secretary told them, pointing at the door. They did so and Dotour looked up, smiling when he saw them, though it was a tired and stressed smile.

"Ah, there you are," he said. "What of Snowhead?" So they told him the story.

"So that's how it was…" he put his fingers into a pyramid. "The ancient guardians being revived and imprisoning the giants…that can't be good," He turned and looked out the big window behind his chair. "You can only continue, I assume. The town guard is busy shoring up things," He turned back around. "I heard from my wife, who heard from the manager of the Indigo-Gos, that the Great Bay's waters are becoming filthier by the day. If what you said is true, a masked guardian has likely returned there, as well,"

"So that's our next destination?" Ashei asked.

"Yes," Dotour agreed. "Tomorrow, you should set out for the Great Bay and see what you can see," He flipped them a silver rupee. "I'll pay you 300 for tomorrow's job. Time is of the essence and in short supply,"

"Yes, sir," Rusl pocketed the money and gave a small bow, as did the others, and they left, heading back to the inn.

"He seems awfully stressed about something," Shad observed.

"Well, being the Mayor in times like these, he's likely got a lot on his plate," Rusl replied. "And there may be news that he didn't share with us,"

"Some things would cause a panic if they got out, yeah? He wouldn't tell some stuff unless he had to," Ashei added.

They heard shouting as they entered the inn.

"Why don't you throw those bums out? They owe way too much to let them just keep staying here!" Mutoh barked at Anju, who was looking a bit scared.

"Father, they're trying their best to pay me, and they don't have anywhere else to go!" she protested.

"Pah! Then they should get a better job, or live in a cave!" the carpenter boss snapped.

"What's going on here?" Rusl stepped in. "If this is about the rent, it is as she says," he handed over the silver rupee, bringing their debt down to 16,350 rupees. "Now, could you kindly move and let us go to bed?" Mutoh looked vindictively at the trio and then left, sulking.

"He's just a little overbearing," Anju assured them with a forced smile. "I'll bring supper up in a while," The trio nodded and went up to their room.

"That Mutoh doesn't know when to let up," Shad commented. "I admire you for stepping into that argument, though, Rusl,"

"It wasn't much," Rusl replied, putting his helmet on the bedside table. "I've broken up worse arguments,"

"I think he just doesn't know how to express himself without yelling, yeah?" Ashei suggested.

"Perhaps…" Shad said thoughtfully. A knock on the door interrupted them as Anju nudged her way in with a tray of food and water and put it on the table.

"Your meal," she said with a voice that suggested that she was very disappointed with something. After she left, they sat down to their food.

"It's not that bad tonight," Shad was surprised.

"If I were to venture a guess, I'd say that someone took over her kitchen duties for her," Rusl mused, a wolf howling in the distance.

**Night of the Second Day**

"Too bad that person doesn't cook every night, yeah?" Ashei added, taking a bite from her piece of fried cucco.

"That's not very polite," Shad said, looking slightly offended. Rusl laughed at his expression and Ashei chuckled a little. After a while, the bookworm joined in. It was just another night with Team Eye.

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**Poor Anju, even her husband cooks better than her, and there's a story there about Kafei's time in hiding, but I'll save it for later. Remember to tell me how I did and tune in for the adventure in Great Bay, it'll be jammin'! (if the band gets on screen, that is :) ) Btw, there is now a poll on my profile page for who you think is the best team. Feel free to cast your vote. I'll be closing the poll...whenever I feel like it, after the story is done, so probably never.**


	9. Team Eye Level 5

**So I have managed to slowly manufacture this chapter. I still own nothing!****

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**Level 5**

**Dawn of the Third Day**

The rooster crowed the next morning, as usual, and Rusl, as usual, got out of bed and stretched before going to the window and looking out on the world, bathed in first sunlight of the morning. Shad, as was his wont, had fallen asleep, yet again, at the table. You almost had to feel sorry for the guy, never getting to sleep in a bed. Rusl smiled at the peace his allies were at, seeing Ashei spread out on the bed and snoring slightly. Shad suddenly gave a snort and fell out of his chair, hitting the floor with a thud.

"Eh, what?" he shouted, sitting up and grabbing his glasses, as they fell in his lap when he suddenly sat up, they already being loose. He looked around and grunted, getting up and sitting back in his chair.

"Good morning," Rusl greeted him.

"And the same to you," the bookworm replied, his gentlemanly demeanor only slightly marred by his grogginess.

"Ashei," Rusl called to the snoozing archer. Better to wake grumpy sleepers now than later, he always said. Otherwise, you'd always be late. "Ashei!" She gave a grunt that sounded like a threat and rolled over. Anju's familiar knock came through the door at that point.

"Come in!" Shad's sentence was punctuated with a yawn. The innkeeper bustled in, looking tired but smiling all the same and put down their food.

"Please don't feel unwelcome. You can stay here until you get back on your feet," she said kindly.

"Don't worry about the rent, we'll pay it off…somehow," Rusl promised. "Maybe we'll get work every day from now on,"

"I hope you're right," she curtsied and left the room.

"We've just got to pull though for that woman," Shad said as he nibbled at his food, already missing Kafei's cooking. "Anyone else would've given us the boot long ago,"

"Yes," Rusl nodded. "We'll just have to look harder for work, that's all," He went over and gave Ashei a kick in the side. "Wake up!" She, predictably, lashed out, but he jumped back and avoided it. Rubbing her eyes, the archer finally sat up and growled,

"What's the idea, yeah?"

"Just eat your food," Rusl replied, going over to the table as well. "We have a big day today,"

"Yeah, having to smell salt water and get sand in my boots," she grumbled, donning her armor and flopping down in the remaining chair.

"I happen to find the beach quite stimulating," Shad said conversationally. "The sun warms my city skin and I like nothing better than to sit under an umbrella and read whilst listening to the waves as they churn against the shore,"

"I doubt this'll be a day at the beach, city boy," Ashei grumbled, choking down their horrible fare. After about a whole year, they still weren't used to it. Oh, well. Law of nature, right?

The trio stepped outside as the bell tolled 07:00. Everything was the same as usual, but they could almost feel the tension in the air, as though something big was coming and the city was in the middle of it.

"Well, off to the west gate," Rusl announced, taking a right turn and leading them into South Clock Town. They looped around the tower, bypassing the gate that would lead to North Clock Town, and headed for the way to West Clock Town.

"This clock tower really is a work of ingenuity," Shad commented admiringly as he looked up at the large structure. "I should like to study the workings of such a landmark if I am ever permitted the time and honor," So they continued into West Clock Town and, as usual, the guard stopped them at the gate for a warning.

"You're going to the Great Bay, right?" he asked.

"Yes," Rusl replied.

"Okay, just be careful. I can't say this too loudly, but the Town Guard has been on edge lately," he cupped a hand around his mouth and leaned in as he spoke. "This unknown tension around town is making Captain Viscen more than a bit edgy,"

"Hopefully, we'll be able to help alleviate the problem," Shad interjected. "If, that is, the next giant tells us anything important,"

They stepped out onto the stone ramp that led down to the sandy area preceding the Great Bay. Two fountains were positioned on either side of the ramp, a landmark for anyone looking for the path to Great Bay. Down the ramp they traveled, making good time, the bell tolled 07:30 as their feet touched sand. The sand shifted with each step, making it much harder to walk and wearing on their legs, but they bore it. Unfortunately, this area was also home to leevers, some of the most irritating monsters in existence. Several suddenly burrowed up out of the ground and assaulted the group without warning. Shad was knocked down by one as it raced over, but Ashei managed to take out many with a volley of arrows. Rusl sliced the rest as Shad got back to his feet.

"That was a definite surprise," he said, brushing sand from his pants. "I must find out more about these creatures," So out came the bestiary and he looked them up. "Let's see…leevers," More appeared as he said this, forcing Rusl and Ashei to kill them as he continued reading. "They keep coming in sandy areas, which is where they live. Easily killed, but fiercely annoying," He put the book away. "We best be moving on or we'll be fighting all day,"

"Gee, what a good idea, yeah?" Ashei scoffed.

The party raced through the area as fast as the sand would allow, and eventually came to a gate, much like the one at Ikana Canyon.

"Well, let's climb it," Rusl said, easily scaling it.

"Move it, yeah?" Ashei gave Shad a shove.

"R-Right," he slowly climbed up on the fence, getting more nervous as he heard the archer's sounds of impatience.

"Just climb the bloody fence, yeah?" she yelled, grabbing him by the leg and forcing him over. He landed, uncermoniously, in an upside-down heap, on the other side. She quickly scaled the fence and dropped next to him. "You call yourself a detective?"

"Well, I'm more into the deduction than the field work," Shad muttered, getting up and straightening his glasses before brushing sand from his person.

"All right, that's enough," Rusl interrupted. "We still have some work to do, here," Ashei gave a humph as the swordsman led the way out of the area that still held some grass and to the area where it was all sand, with a palm tree here and there. They zigzagged between the inconvinently-placed, short, white walls that were, for some odd reason, in the path.

"It's puzzling why these are here," Shad observed. "It's not like they repel invasion or anything…"

"Maybe they're to keep nerds out so that they don't study Zoras too much," Ashei replied sarcastically.

"Hey!" Shad protested.

The leevers gave them no dearth as they crossed the beach, slowing their progress to very little as they battled their way across the shore.

"I dearly dislike these leevers," Shad said when they finally broke through to the stone arch that led to the other side of the shore. The clock tolled 08:00.

"I agree with the sentiment, but, lo! They are not on this end of the shore," Rusl replied.

"Hey, you three," a nearby Zora called. "If you break all three of these in one shot, I'll give you 90 rupees," He gestured to the three pedestals nearby, which each held a pot.

"Sounds like an opportunity to me," Ashei commented, firing a bomb arrow and shattering all three. The Zora looked crestfallen. "Pay up, yeah?"

"Alright, you win," he said unhappily, handing over four red rupees and a yellow one. He didn't, however, reset the game while they were still around. Heading back to the shore, the trio stopped and looked at the circle of reef and stone in the distance.

"Do you suppose that's the temple?" Shad asked, pulling out his map.

"Well, we could ask that Zora," Rusl suggested.

"Ah, that's not the temple," Shad interrupted. "That's Zora Hall, home of the Zoras. The temple…" his face fell a little. "…is even further out. We'll never get there on our own,"

"Well, Zora Hall is our lead, so I say we go there, yeah?" Ashei replied.

"How? Swim?" the mere thought seemed to make the city boy shudder.

"Unless you have some spell in that book that makes a bridge or something, yeah?" Ashei put her hand on her hip and flailed the other impatiently.

"Let me see…" he flipped through his journal. "Water blades, ice blades, frost trap, whirlpool trap, bubble trap…ah, ice platform and ascension geyser!" He pointed at the words in question. "It may take a lot of energy, but I can carry us around to the rear, where the entrance is, with this,"

"Get started, then," Ashei tapped her foot for emphasis. The bookworm went forward and put his hand in the usual casting position. Many words were chanted as some of the water in front of them began to solidify into a cube that widened at the top. A perfect platform for three, assuming no one fell off.

"And there we are," Shad said proudly. "Please board in an orderly fashion and be ready to cover me, should the occasion arise that we are placed under assault,"

"Whatever, drama king," Ashei said dismissively as they boarded. Shad, carefully, last of all.

"Off we go," his hand glowed as he gestured forward and they were off. The water sloshed quietly by as they drifted closer to the distant Zora Hall and the salty breeze ruffled their hair. Unfortunately, a few Guays took interest in them as they passed three rock outcroppings that stuck out of the water, nearby. Ashei sniped each one with relative ease before they could get close enough to nip anybody. Finally, they reached the wall and began the slow, arduous loop around. The bell tolled 08:30 in the distance as they finally arrived at the back entrance. The ice platform ascended a little, at Shad's command, allowing them to step out onto the rock shelf, as it was a bit above water level. The platform melted and vanished as Shad stepped off last, allowing the spell to break.

"That was a bit of a rough trial, but I believe I'm fine," he gasped, hands on his knees.

"Take a green potion, anyway," Rusl recommended.

"Oh, very well," the bookworm took out a vial and downed it, feeling better immediately and straightening up. "Now let's go in and speak with the Zoras, regarding the temple, shall we?"

They stepped through the doorway and into a narrow hallway of sorts. Walking down the hall, they spotted a door to their left, with an obvious sign hanging next to it to inform people that it as the Zora Shop.

"If we weren't so horribly poor, we may consider visiting here, but, alas…" Shad wiped an invisible tear away. Ashei nudged him in the ribs, not very gently, but enough to get the message across. Moving on, they finally came out into a large chamber that was halfway taken up by a pool. Many waterfalls poured from the ceiling to feed said pool, creating a soothing sound and ambiance in the room. Across the pool was a grand stage, fashioned to look like an open clam, if it wasn't an actual one.

"This is a majestic place, make no mistake," Shad said with wonder, taking hold of his glasses to direct them more towards what he looked at.

"I never thought that water and stone could be so beautiful," Rusl added. Ashei humphed. She had been through the Zora's Domain, in Hyrule, before, and she preferred mountains. Not that she didn't like the atmosphere here, of course, but she would never say it aloud.

"Can we move on? We have a temple to explore, yeah?" she said impatiently.

"Of course," Rusl snapped out of his reverie. "Let's go, Shad," The scholar disappointedly tore his gaze away as well and followed them as they wound their way around the pool and to the series of doors, each crested with a different symbol, all guarded by Zora.

"Hey!" a man with a mustache shouted, running over. He was wearing a bit of a fancy outfit, but that didn't put the trio off. "Are you three here to see the Indigo-Gos too?"

"Actually, we're here to visit the Great Bay Temple," Rusl replied. "Do you know how to get there?" Gorman's face fell as he thought.

"Hmm…no clue! But I'm sure that Lulu knows a way," he informed them. "She's often seen speaking with a giant turtle, or so the other Zora tell me,"

"So where is this Lulu, yeah?" Ashei asked brusquely.

"In her dressing room, where else?" Gorman responded. "I could go talk to her for you, since they won't let just anybody into the dressing rooms,"

"That would be most appreciated," Shad said politely.

"Okay, I'll be back," Gorman walked off to the room on the far side of the hall. They saw him converse with the guard for a while and then wait impatiently as the guard stuck his head in to ask Lulu something. Finally, an elegantly beautiful Zora woman emerged from the room in a short dress of blue silk; she had matching earrings. The trio met her halfway and she considered them briefly before speaking.

"So you want to get to the temple, right?" she said.

"Yes, Miss Lulu, we do," Shad replied gentlemanly. "Can you assist us in this endeavor?"

"I'm probably the only one who can," she informed them. "Since you three cannot swim like Zora, you will have to ride the giant turtle and he only awakens to my singing,"

"Let us go then," Rusl nodded. So they headed back the way they had come, Lulu and Gorman, the latter of which loved her singing so much that he just _had _to tag along, in tow.

Once outside, Lulu approached the palm tree-topped island that was nearby the rock outropping they stood on and began to sing a song known to the Zora as the New Wave Bossa Nova. The rock began to shake as she sang and slowly rose out of the water, revealing a turtle's head and limbs. The bell tolled 09:00 in the distance.

"Ah, such a nice sound…" he said with a smile before turning to Team Eye. "Now, the seas have told me much in my sleep. You three wish to get to the Great Bay Temple and free the giant that is imprisoned there,"

"Yes," Rusl replied.

"Very well, get on my back and hold tight to the trees," the turtle said. Ashei tied a rope to an arrow and fired it at one of the trees. Once they had all climbed, ignoring Shad's usual protests as he was sent up second this time, they all clinged tight to the trees as the turtle swam out to sea, heading for the perpetual cyclone around an area in the distance.

"Are you certain we shall be able to pass through that twister unscathed?" Shad yelled down to the turtle.

"No problem at all," the turtle answered. "Hold on tight, now," He began to dive.

"You're diving? My, w-" the water cut the bookworm off and they were forced to hold their breath for a tense thirty seconds. Finally, the turtle broke the water in a medium-sized inlet pool that was within a damp, dark room. They all jumped off of the turtle as he stopped at the water's edge.

"Thank you for the help," Rusl told him.

"Any time. I'll wait here to give you a ride back," it replied.

"Now I'm soaked with seawater," Shad whined, trying to shake it out of his hair. "And my clothes are all but ruined,"

"Suck it up, yeah?" Ashei slapped the back of his head. "We can wash our clothes when we get back to Clock Town,"

"Simple for you to say," Shad shuddered. "I'm freezing in here,"

"That's enough, you two," Rusl said firmly. "The portal is right there, so we needn't go much further in,"

"That's dandy and all, but what say we take a moment to warm ourselves, so as to promote better performance in battle?" Shad suggested, rubbing his hands on his arms. So they sat down, against Ashei's objections, and waited to dry out a little. This, of course was offset a bit by the fact that this place was cool and moist, perfect for a Zora, but not so much for a Hylian. On a random impulse, Shad pulled out the soup that they had been presented with the previous day.

"Don't tell me you plan to eat that?" Rusl commented. Shad opened the bottle and sniffed the contents gingerly.

"It doesn't seem spoiled, then again, it doesn't seem like conventional soup, either," the bookworm observed. Ashei swiped the bottle and sniffed it.

"It seems like a crude version of Mountainus Elixirus," she noted, handing it back. She noticed the blank looks on her companions' faces. "It's a mixture that promotes warmth when you're about in the cold mountains, yeah?"

"The smith assistant must have realized that we might need it," Rusl observed.

"Smarter than he looked, that chap, eh?" Shad gave a small chuckle. "Well, what say we partake of this so to more quickly warm up?"

"Might as well," Ashei said flippantly. So they shared the contents, one sip each, though Ashei was loath to drink after Shad, saying that she might get "city germs".

"I resent that!" Shad said jokingly, finding the notion ridiculous enough for comedy.

"You never know, yeah?" the archer replied. "I might start getting prissy and scared of getting my armor dirty," Rusl just watched with amusement, the banter that he had come to enjoy.

The bell tolled 09:30 outside, a short while later, and the trio now felt sufficently warm, despite their cold, wet clothing.

"Well, now would be a good time to press on," Rusl suggested, standing.

"Yes, I agree wholeheartedly," Shad nodded, standing as well. So they proceeded to the warp panel that shone in front of them, and vanished in a flash of white light.

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**Oh, no, another cliffhanger! Review and tune in to the next chapter for a load of battles! Btw, you can now vote on your favorite team on my profile page. Feel free to do so.**


	10. Team Eye Level 6

**So I managed to throw together this too before the day was out, but I sorta cheated since one of the fight scenes was already in the other story and I couldn't find many improvments. Of course, it is late and all...(mwa, ha, ha). I own nothing!****

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******

Level 6

They reappeared on a round, stone column that was surrounded by water, in an underground, enclosed room.

"I say, this chamber is even more so dank and depressing than the last one," Shad observed, holding his glasses up from his nose with one hand as he looked around the room.

"I sense something unfriendly in that water," Rusl commented, looking uneasily into it. "Be cautious," Ashei gagged slightly as she actually analyzed the foul scent in the air.

"It stinks like a pile of rotting fish, yeah?" she noted, also looking in the water. Suddenly, a massive fish sprang out of the water, showering them with the fluid, and attempted to scrape them with its mighty fangs and scales as it passed over. Ashei fired a potshot, lodging the arrow behind its left fin, before it finished its grand jump. After it splashed into the water on the other side, Rusl whipped out his blade and looked around quickly for the fish's location. Meanwhile, Shad frantically flipped through his bestiary.

"Ah, here we are, Gargantuan Masked Fish, Gyorg!" he exclaimed as the platform rocked wildly, making them have to brace their footing on the already-wet concrete. It stays in the water most of the time, but we can hit it with ranged attacks. Unfortunately, it can only be hurt when it's stunned or if you manage to find a chink in the armor," Gyorg rammed the platform again as he stowed his book away, almost making him fall. Ashei shot a fire arrow at its eye and made it recoil from the attack, momentarily stunned. Shad took advantage and began to summon ice spears in the water. They appeared around Gyorg as it was about to shake off its dizzy spell and pierced it six times, making it let out a high-pitched screech of pain. They shielded their ears as it darted away, eyeing them angrily. Rusl stood, feeling rather useless, as they attempted to predict the monster's next move. It swooped around and rammed the platform again, this time near Ashei; she stumbled and slid off with a loud curse.

"Ashei!" both men cried as they sprang over to her as she fell into the icy waters. Submerged, she now looked the large fish in the face as it raced at her, ready to gore her with its massive teeth. Suddenly, though, it ran into a wall of ice, stunning itself. Shad quickly made several swiping motions with his hand and uttered a few words of incantation as more ice spears pierced the fish. It screeched again as Rusl pulled Ashei, sputtering and grimacing angrily, out of the water. Drawing back, Gyorg leapt at them again, hoping to get them while they were a man down. Rusl jumped over its bite as Ashei ducked it by going prone. Landing on its back, the swordsman drove his blade into the unarmored spot, behind the gills, that Ashei had unintentionally shown him earlier. Gyorg screeched yet again and began to writhe. Rusl jumped off, back flipping, and landed on the platform again as the fish smashed into the wall and fell to the water, limp, before dissolving into red bubbles.

"Good save there, Shad," Rusl commended the bookworm as the blue portal opened in the middle of the platform.

"No problem. Anything to help a lady, even if she be sharp of wit and tongue," he said with a gentlemanly smile. Ashei gave him an odd, analyzing look, but just coughed and looked away, wringing water out of her hair.

"We should go to the giant now, yeah?" she said after an awkward silence.

"Yes, we should," Rusl agreed. "We have tarried here long enough, and who knows how long we'll have afterward?"

They appeared, yet again, in the odd realm of the giants and, once again, a giant stood in the distance, observing them.

_The third giant, you have freed. One more, and the truth will be revealed._

"Giant, such animosity has descended upon Termina, particularly in Clock Town," Shad replied. "Why is this, O Guardian?"

_Clock Town…the center of Termina where the evil one's strike will fall hardest. Tomorrow, its foul minions will begin to truly show themselves. Show caution as you go to free the last giant. The…giant…of…the…swamp…_

It turned and walked away, as well and, before they could blink, they were back outside Zora Hall. Shad pulled out his pocket watch and perused it.

"14:30," he read. "The morning has fled us and left afternoon in her wake," The bell tolled once in the distance to emphasize this.

"Well, that only leaves us 3 ½ hours before sunset," Rusl added. "We should set off,"

"Get your book out and start casting, city boy," Ashei said flatly. He sighed and complied.

Finally, they arrived at the shore as the clock informed them of 15:00. Shad, exhausted, was forced to down yet another green potion, leaving them with one green and two blue left.

"You have no endurance at all," Ashei jabbed.

"Well, my good lady, your arrow magic is much less draining than my arcane magic," Shad replied with more politeness than was typically due when being insulted. The archer opened her mouth for a retort, but Rusl stepped between them.

"Now, now…Shad has rested, let's head back to town," he said. They decided he was right and they were off. Unfortunately, as they came through the archway that separated the Zora Cape area from the rest of the beach, they spotted three unwelcome figures ahead.

"Look, Rusl, its those villains again!" Shad yelled, pointing ahead.

"Well, I was getting bored, anyway," Ashei said flippantly, pulling out her bow.

"Ashei, Shad, back me up!" Rusl barked, pulling out his sword.

"It's just one thing after another today," the mage in dark blue sighed, floating up in the air and summoning wind currents.

"I will repay you for last time," Ganondorf declared as the two groups charged forward. Knil and Rusl clashed blades as Ganondorf attempted to punch Shad, but the scholar was too quick for him and trapped him in a sinkhole with his arcane magic before battering him with fireballs.

Ashei fired several volleys at Vaati, but he blocked them all and retaliated with a huge blast of wind that sent her flipping away, head-over-heels, before she slid to a stop, back-flipped back onto her feet, and fired a light arrow as he charged at her. Vaati spun out and had to fly a loop before he recovered.

Rusl fiercely unleashed a lengthy combo on Knil, but it was no use, although he was driving his foe back. Finally, Knil gave a sneer and rolled out of the way of one of his diagonal swings, performing a spinning cut and taking the Ordonian swordsman out.

Ganondorf, meanwhile, finally broke out of the sinkhole with a burst of dark energy that surged from his body and punched Shad out like before, making him fly a good distance before stopping and lying prone.

Vaati was trading arrows and wind spells with Ashei, the former blocking some of her arrows (except the light ones). She quickly noticed that her comrades were beaten and uttered a curse before leaping away and firing several volleys at Knil and Ganondorf. The former dodged and deflected while the latter took several hits and quickly started to look like a pincushion. Unfortunately for her, it was a minor annoyance and he fired a few dark blasts at her as she landed. She attempted to jump and flip out of the way, but Vaati was already firing wind spells where she was landing and she was sent sprawling into the pot smashing game. The Zora, of course, had already run for it, as had the others in the area.

"That smarts," Ashei muttered as the villains advanced. She shot three light arrows at them, but only two found their mark and Ganondorf and Vaati were repelled and hurt sorely. Knil, though, jumped over it and landed right in front of her. She could scarcely utter a gasp before he punched her in the stomach and roundhouse-kicked her upside the head, making her flop to the ground like a rag doll.

Shad, once again, was the first to awaken. This time, though, there was no medic to help and no Viscen to speak words of comfort. He sat up, feeling the pain in his head acutely and looked around. Ashei lie nearby, sporting a rather painful-looking bruise on the side of her face. Further investigation revealed a feebly stirring and bleed Rusl some yards or so away. The bell tolled 17:00 in the distance, the sky turning orange, as Shad cursed their luck and fumbled with a vial of blue potion. He drank half of the vial, feeling the healing effects immediately, and then struggled to his feet. Limping over to the fallen archer, he propped her into a sitting position and poured the medicine down her throat. She gave a gasp and a small cough before opening her eyes a crack.

"Oh, no…I'm in hell and it's full of nerds," she mumbled. Shad chuckled.

"Delighted to hear that you still possess a sense of humor," he smiled, helping her sit up and giving her a piece of jerky to chew on. "Sit tight, I must attend to Rusl," He walked over to where his other companion lies, just short of the leever territory. He rolled him over and he responded with a moan.

"Shad?" he muttered, his eye open a crack.

"Right you are," the bookworm replied. "Here, take this," he poured the last vial into the swordsman's mouth. He recovered a handful of seconds after swallowing and sat up, feeling the sizeable tear in the back of his outfit.

"I suppose we cut it close, this time," he commented, standing and going with Shad to where Ashei sat.

"That we did, my dear Rusl," Shad sighed. "Twice we have been defeated by those villains and twice we still live…" he looked at the sky contemplatively. "The question is why?"

"And another is, what are they searching for?" Rusl added.

"Remember the first giant?" Ashei interjected. "It said that six were hunting the jewels that contain their power, yeah?"

"Three for good and three for ill…" Shad recalled. "Do you suppose that those three are the ones that seek them for ill?"

"Then who seeks them for good?" Rusl asked.

"Did not Kafei mention that Team Link is searching for them, as well?" Shad noted.

"Yes, he did," Ashei replied. "So that solves one mystery. Now how are we gonna get back to town in less than an hour, yeah? Nerd power?"

"Hey, hey!" Shad protested.

"We'll have to travel quickly," Rusl affirmed. Ashei climbed to her feet, wincing slightly at the soreness in her body.

So they hastened back across the beach, carving a path through the leevers. Careful to wend their way around the walls in the path, they arrived back at the gate, 10 minutes shy of the half-hour. Vaulting the gate, with Shad's usual protests unheard this time, they traveled back into Termina Field and batted more leevers aside as the clock tolled 17:30 and time ticked on. Finally, they, rather tired now, arrived at the west gate. The welcome, though, was far from warm. No less than six guards now stood at the gate and many more patrolled the streets, looking for something.

"Halt!" one of the guards demanded. "No one is allowed in!" Rusl showed them his pass. "Right…my apologies. Three shady characters broke gate about 45 minutes ago. The clock tolled 18:00 at last.

**Night of the Third Day**

"We too, encountered them earlier," Rusl replied. "They are quite formidable, and we are fatigued from our struggles,"

"Right, come in," the guard stood aside and let them in. The trio promptly took the shortest route, cutting though South and North Clock Town, to the Mayor's Residence.

"The Mayor's, like, talking with Captain Viscen right now," the secretary informed them.

"We have business with him as well," Shad replied. "We'll see ourselves in," She was about to protest, but decided better of it as the trio entered the office.

"This is the third time this has happened, Mayor!" Viscen was exclaiming. "We must take action against such things, now!" Dotour, looking glum, shifted his gaze over and saw the battered and dirty trio.

"Ah, you're back!" he said, a tired smile lighting his face for a moment. "Tell me what you have heard,"

"That isn't good," Viscen said gravely, after they had finished. "It sounds as if the town is in grave danger," He looked at Dotour. "Sir, I am ordering a town wide lockdown, starting tomorrow morning,"

"A lockdown? Yes, perhaps that is best," the Mayor agreed grimly. He looked at Team Eye. "I thank you for bringing us this information," He handed Rusl a silver rupee and an orange one. "Here is your fee. Go and rest now,"

"But we have yet to visit the Southern Swamp and liberate the giant there!" Shad protested.

"We have found out enough to see that something untoward will happen here," Viscen said officially. "If you wish to liberate the last giant, we will not pay you for it,"

"Be sure to be prepared before you leave on the morrow, for, once in lockdown, no one is allowed through the town gates, friend or fiend," Dotour warned.

"Yes, sir, we understand," Rusl gave a small bow and they left.

"I don't understand how they can just turn their backs on what we've strived for," Shad said with disdain.

"Their first responsibility is to the town, not to Termina, or the giants," Rusl replied solemnly. "This is something that we will do on our own,"

They passed into the Stock Pot Inn and Rusl handed over the 300 rupees they had just received, bringing their debt down to 16,100. Ashei swayed as she watched the proceedings, her head feeling rather light and dizzy. Shad, noticing her about to fall, caught her arm quickly and braced her against his body.

"Are you all right?" he asked. She grunted and tried to pull away, but quickly fell back against him again. "Rusl," he said to the swordsman. "I'm going to take Ashei up to the room," The swordsman looked mildly worried and nodded.

"Why did not you declare that you didn't feel your best?" the bookworm asked as he led her slowly up the stairs.

"I'm…fine…just a…little dizzy…" she murmured, trying and failing to look impassive.

"You must have a bit of a concussion and we didn't help you out by making you run," the bookworm deduced guiltily. He opened the door and helped her over to the bed, nudging the door shut with his foot. He undid the straps and ties on her armor and it clattered to the floor. She fell into bed with little persuasion and Shad removed her boots as she lie there, looking at him with half-lidded eyes. "I'm astonished that you were able to make the trip in your condition," he said, piling her armor and bow neatly at the foot of the bed. "Let me go get Lucius. He should be back by now," He headed out the door and up the hall, passing Rusl and briefly explaining what was going on. Finally reaching room 4, he knocked lightly. "Is Lucius in there?" The door swung open, revealing a tired but alert blonde mage.

"Yes, what is it, Shad?" he asked in his mild tones.

"Ashei seems to have taken a bit of a blow to the head and I was hoping that you could take a look at her," the bookworm replied.

"I hope it's nothing too serious," Link said from the bed, where he was examining some sort of glowing, and silver compass. "Can't do without Ashei,"

"I'll take a look at her," Lucius nodded, going out and closing the door as Shad led the way back to the room. She seemed semi-conscious, but still stared with half-open eyes at them as they walked in. Lucius walked regally over to the bedside and crouched, holding a glowing hand to her head and closing his auburn eyes. A silent minute passed before, he opened his eyes again. "She seems to have taken a mighty blow to the head, but it has been partially cured," He looked at Shad. "I assume that you gave her less than a full dose of medicine,"

"Yes," Shad answered. "We lacked in amount, alas I was forced to divide the dose,"

"That's all that kept her going this long, I'm sure," the mage muttered, standing and holding his staff over her. "_O Goddess of Wisdom, heal mine allies of their wounds!_" A blue light emanated from the staff and encompassed the archer, causing her to glow blue for a couple of seconds. Then it faded, and she drifted off to sleep.

"Will she be all right now?" Rusl inquired of the mage.

"If she sleeps until tomorrow morning, she should be fine," Lucius confirmed.

"My thanks for lending the time to give aid to us," Shad shook the mage's hand.

"You're very welcome," Lucius gave a small smile. "Good night," He opened the door, avoiding Anju and her tray with a polite "excuse me" and walking back to his room. She set the tray on the table and bowed before leaving. The bell rang 18:30 outside as they sat down to eat in silence, occasionally casting glances at the sleeping Ashei.

"It's odd not hearing her snide remarks," Rusl finally said quietly, taking a bite of burnt fish that was, somehow, raw on the inside and shuddering.

"True, I, for one, wish that she could enjoy this atrocious food with us," Shad gave a small smile at his own joke. After supper, Rusl went to bed, but Shad stayed up, looking out the window, for a change, at the patrols in the street. _I get the feeling that the giant's words will take full effect in the time after the dawn. The final giant will not be so easily freed. _He looked over at his snoozing comrades and allowed himself a smile. _But we'll pull through, I'm certain. Team Eye never fails a mission, come bad weather or critical injury._ He sighed and went back over to the table, opening up his notes that he had been making since the start of his, two nights ago.

**Dawn of the Fourth Day**

Many bells rang that morning, along with the signal of dawn from the clock tower. Rusl, Shad, and even Ashei were roused by the almost musical din that came from the direction of South Clock Town. Getting up rather quickly, they made their way out of the inn. Team Link was already in the lobby with Anju, and were also heading out to see what the commotion was.

Everyone in Clock Town, it seemed, was gathered in the southern plaza, looking intently at the podium that Viscen was now ascending to. Everyone, including the many guards around the crowd's perimeter, looked raptly at the Captain. He cleared his throat and held a wooden cone to his mouth.

"As of today, no one may enter or leave Clock Town," he announced. There was a general murmur at this. "It seems," he continued. "That the monsters outside town are now not only more numerous and aggressive, but are spawning new, dark versions of themselves. The Town Guard is attempting to ascertain the cause; therefore we also place a curfew on the entire town. No one is to leave their houses unless necessary and they must be escorted by a guard while in the streets. Guards will patrol the streets in pairs, 24 hours a day, in shifts, from this point forward. That is all. Look to the postman for letters containing any further instruction," After this, Viscen left the podium and headed back to the mayor's office, and the crowd was dispersed and led off by the guards.

"It's just as he said last night," Rusl turned to the other two as the gates clanged shut nearby. "We won't be able to return to town if we leave, and we may have trouble doing that,"

"That's something we already accepted, yeah?" Ashei interjected. "Let's go to West Clock Town and get some more supplies, then we'll get out of here and free the last giant!"

So they went over to the Trading Post as it opened, eating some rations on the way, and bought three red potions for 90 rupees, as well as two green ones for 60. This, essentially, emptied their wallets, but the medicine was worth having no money if it saved them later. The bell tolled 06:30 as they headed back down the street to South Clock Town, fully prepared to leave town.

"You heard the Captain," the guard informed them as they approached the gate. "No one in or out of the town. Now, get!"

"We have been given permission of the Mayor to leave, though none to return," Rusl said gravely. "Now stand aside, lest you feel our wrath," The guard frowned, but decided not to challenge them, signaling to open the gate just wide enough for them to leave. The trio walked past the grim men and through the gate, hearing it slam behind them as they looked out over the stretch of the southern end of Termina Field. Their last destination was just ahead.

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**That may just be the most dramatic sentence I've ever come up with, but I'm still being mean with cliffhangers (cue evil laugh and lightning flash). Some fluffy moments here, I guess, but the story is now getting serious and down to the wire. I'll soon be done with this team as well :(. Remember to give me feedback and to vote on your favorite team on my profile page.**


	11. Team Eye Level 7

**And so we enter the possibly-next-to-last chapter of Team Eye's story. I still own nothing and that's not about to change soon, I don't think. Warning: This chapter contains a dramatic speech and a lot of exposition.**

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Level 7

The grave team scarcely had time to get over their dramatic decision before they spotted glowing, black blobs up ahead. It was now 07:05.

"My word, these creatures don't match anything in my bestiary," Shad said worriedly as he flipped through said book hurriedly.

"These are the new monsters that Viscen spoke of, I deem," Rusl concluded.

"Yes, they are dark, black versions of chuchus," Shad replied. "Therefore, as a scholar, I deem them Black Chuchus and shall add their data to my bestiary, assuming we survive the upcoming encounter, that is," As they drew closer, though, it became apparent that the large group of creatures were dead, recently, it seemed.

"Who could've destroyed all these in such a brutal fashion, yeah?" Ashei commented.

"I have one idea," Shad straightened his glasses as he squinted off to the east. "Those villains were just here,"

"I have a half a mind to pursue them, but we have a mission to fulfill here," Rusl said, turning his head away from the retreating figures in the distance, as though to look away from temptation. "Come, the Southern Swamp awaits!"

"With all of its smells and muck," Ashei muttered, sarcastically imitating enthusiasm. Shad gave the dead chuchus one last glance and regretfully followed them.

"I only wish I had been able to secure data on them," he lamented as they headed for the area where the forest narrowed the walking space into a road.

"You're such a nerd, yeah?" Ashei rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, if we see any more, we'll be glad to let them have first crack at you so you can study them, yeah?"

"Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?" Shad answered, looking genuinely worried.

As they continued down the forest path, they spotted six more Black Chuchus and they, being alive, returned the favor and came at the group. Rusl charged at them and slashed one, dodging a second as it tried to bite him, only to have it and two others explode from one of Ashei's bomb arrows. Shad trapped the other two in a sinkhole and summoned a boulder from the ground, smashing them to goo with it.

"Analysis complete!" he said happily, before several Black Evil Bats came out of the tree and bit his arm. "Ow! Ow! These are a new breed, too!" he ran around trying to beat them off, making prissy comments of how his clothes would never survive the ordeal. Taking pity after about ten seconds, Ashei sniped the bats and they fell dead on the ground. Seeing that he wasn't under attack anymore, Shad went into nerd mode again and started studying the dead bats.

"Are you ever gonna be done, yeah?" Ashei complained, kicking a dead bat for emphasis. Rusl picked one up, as he saw the edge of something suspicious under a wing. "What is it, Rusl? Don't tell me you're nerding out too, yeah?"

"This emblem…" he stretched out the bat's left wing and displayed the emblem. "Doesn't it look familiar?"

"Was this not upon every warp panel in every temple, thus far?" Shad observed, looking at the emblem on the bat he was examining. "It could be concluded that these black monsters and the 'evil power' that has revived the masked guardians has something to do with this whole caper, no?"

"We should get to the temple, yeah?" Ashei replied. "City boy might explode if he doesn't find out the solution to the mystery soon, yeah?" Rusl gave a small laugh.

"All right, company forward," he gave a mock salute and turned back to the path.

"I shall not!" Shad objected as he followed them, not seeing the trio that was walking up the path behind them.

A building on stilts awaited as they came to the swamp itself. The stink also waited and broad sided them upon arrival, though it had lingered ominously in the background until this point.

"What crawled here and died, yeah?" Ashei complained, crinkling her nose.

"Many things lie in the swamp," Shad responded. "Mud, dung, creatures, living and dead, and many more things that best not be mentioned," Rusl had already climbed up to the stilt house while they talked. "But our leader is escaping us, let us follow, forthwith," Ashei imitated him behind his back and then followed.

"Camera Shop and Boat Tours," Rusl read the sign beside the door.

"I suppose we'll need to take a boat to get to Woodfall," Shad commented, his map in his hands. "The trouble is, how shall we navigate the path beyond and reach the temple?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Rusl said, opening the door.

"Or burn it," Ashei added.

"Welcome to Koume's Boat Tours," the hag in the booth greeted them. The fat, hairy guy, at the counter to their left, was asleep. "For only 20 rupees, you too can go to the Deku Palace," She looked at the floor. "Although it was recently, mostly demolished by my idiot son and his nemesis, but the Dekus might like some tourism to help fund rebuilding,"

"Your son?" Shad repeated.

"Yes, that brat, Ganondorf," Koume replied. "Too busy planning cockamamie schemes to write his own mother! I changed his diapers since he was-"

"Look, lady, we don't care about your dysfunctional family, yeah?" Ashei interrupted, slapping a red rupee on the table. "Just give us the blasted tour, yeah?"

"Fine, fine…" Koume grumbled. "Everyone's so mean to an old hag nowadays," She hopped on her broom and flew out the window. The party went out and saw a decent-sized boat coasting into view with the witch beside it. It stopped at the end of the dock that went under the stilt house. "Well, all aboard for Deku Palace!" They all got slowly on the boat, one by one, and, when they were all seated, the craft coasted off at a medium pace. The clock rang 07:30.

"Well, this is rather lovely," Shad commented. "It reminds me of an outing to Lake Hylia that I once took a few years ago…"

"I used to go swimming in Lake Hylia too," Koume replied. "It's how I got interested in boating. But then Kotake and I ended up apprenticed to some sorcerer and he beat us night and day with an ugly stick until we looked like hags, but we knew magic. Some trade-off, huh? That reminds me of another story. When Ganondorf first met up, he would never stop crying. He thought we were monsters or something," Ashei opened her mouth, but Rusl put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "But he eventually warmed up to us, we eventually got him a pet Wolfos. Of course, it tried to eat him, and he started studying dark magic after that so he could punch out anything that tried to eat him again," Ashei gave a yawn and looked at the dock that had been next to them for about a minute. The witch, however, was unaware, and continued her story. "But I suppose being a fire witch and an ice witch with a kid had its perks. For example, it was easy to heat up or freeze food, or house fires for that matter. Ho, ho, ho, ho!" Ashei tapped the others on the shoulder and pointed to the nearby wall that held the door to the Deku Palace. The others nodded and decided to leave the hag to herself. "But it was a cold winter that year, and I was lost out in the…"

The trio indeed saw the Deku Palace, in all its wrecked glory, as they entered the area.

"The villains are behind this, no mistake," Shad noted. "I suppose one of those villain chaps earlier was Ganondorf,"

"Come to think of it, we never really got to see him that well before, did we?" Rusl said contemplatively.

"Whatever! Let's just look around for a way to the temple, yeah?" Ashei interjected.

"Very well, but I doubt that the Dekus will want to help right now," Shad warned.

A short scan of the area revealed an alcove across from the plank path that led to the palace; the path that they were standing on. "This water, though, looks poisonous," the bookworm let drop a cracker and it dissolved quickly. "Corrosively so. Any ideas for the crossing?"

"An air bridge?" Rusl suggested. Shad opened his journal and scanned the pages.

"Yes, that could word, I suppose," the wind swirled about the waters, making it ripple, as the invisible bridge formed.

"So…how are we supposed to see it to walk on it?" Ashei asked the million-rupee question.

"Wherever the water ripples, the bridge sits," Shad explained. "If you're nervous, I'd be glad to lead us across," This vote of confidence and his follow-through of his offer convinced the other two to follow his slow gait across. Finally, they were all on the small island that was below the ledge and he allowed the bridge to dissipate.

"Now, how to get up there?" Rusl looked at the ledge above. "Shad, can you raise the ground under us?"

"Oh, easily," the bookworm replied. "Though I must say that this ordeal is draining my power and I'm sure we're not there yet," His hand glowed as he raised it and he chanted words as a mighty shaft lifted out of the ground, elevating them to the ledge above. They stepped off, letting the column revert to its former state, and walked back to the area where they'd left the boat.

"Look, the old hag's still going," Ashei pointed out flatly, gesturing to Koume below. She was still hovering there, sure enough, yakking to an empty boat. The bells rang out 08:00. Stifling a chuckle, Shad and Rusl looked out over the large gap between where they were and the distant platform that led into the center of the swamp.

"I'm almost certain that the temple is there," Shad put away his map. "But I suppose that I'll have to overexert myself again to get us there," He drank half a vial of green potion, leaving 2 in the bag, and called forth another air bridge, this one much longer than the last and far over the water below. He started across, saying nothing because he had to concentrate and it was hard enough to walk and cast at the same time. Thirty slow minutes later, they arrived at the other side and Shad let the spell drop before finishing the vial and taking a few deep breaths.

"Are you okay?" Rusl asked.

"I'll be fine," Shad straightened up. "Let's go to the temple, shall we?"

They emerged in an area that held water more polluted than anywhere. Their noses and throats stung just from breathing.

"The air is so foul here," Ashei coughed. "Hurry up!" She started to walk up the stone ramp that led to the temple. It wasn't long until they stood inside, looking at yet another glowing panel, but behind a curtain of reeds that concealed a small room.

"Stop right there!" a voice called from the entrance. They spun and saw a woman with red hair, sporting a white dress and a bow. With her was a lanky man in overalls, sporting a mustache and a pitchfork, and a fatter man in overalls, sporting nothing but his fists and looking drowsy, though he quickly shook it off after a kick in the shin from his thinner partner. "Romani knows that you have her cousin and sister here, so fess up!"

"Now, hold on a second, we just arrived," Shad protested, taking a step forward. The woman bent her bow.

"Not another step, Preppy!" she demanded. Ashei let out a snicker at the nickname. "Quiet, Rockface!" Ashei quickly looked miffed and reached for her own bow.

"If you intend to impede our mission, expect no quarter," Rusl threatened, drawing his sword.

"Go away or suffer a beating, yeah?" Ashei agreed, drawing her bow and fitting an arrow.

"Fine, we'll kick your butts and take them back ourselves!" Romani shouted.

"Uh, Romani…" the fat guy tried to protest, but the other guy and Romani were already in full battle mode. Ingo rushed at Rusl, attempting to spear him with his pitchfork, but Rusl managed to lock his blade with the other weapon and begin a struggle match. Romani and Ashei aimed at each other, but both of their shots were thrown off as Talon jumped the latter.

"This is some kind of misunderstanding!" Shad protested over the fighting as Rusl pulled away from Ingo and took a fierce swipe. The stable hand blocked it with the handle of his pitchfork and turned the implement, thus turning the sword away, and butted Rusl in the face with the end, causing him to stagger a step before recovering in time to turn aside to avoid being speared. Shad, as the words left his mouth, saw Ashei kick the fat man off of her and kick him away. Unfortunately, it was at the aforementioned bookworm and he couldn't move in time to avoid being collided with. He and Talon rolled a few times, the overweight rancher trying to punch him in the head, before Shad managed to summon a small shaft of rock to punch him in the face and send him rolling off. Scurrying to his feet, the nerd took some distance from the grappler and began casting a trap as he got back up.

Ashei, meanwhile, was trying to snipe Romani with fire, ice, bomb, and even light arrows, but the ranch girl was more agile than she looked, and returned every shot. Fortunately, Ashei was able to roll and sidestep around the shots just as easily. Rusl finally wrenched Ingo's pitchfork aside and punched him in the face, sending him reeling back. Unfortunately for the swordsman, Romani decided to send her next bomb arrow at him. The explosion struck his chest and sent him flying backwards into a wall, knocking out Talon in the process, before the rancher could reach Shad, as well as Rusl. Ingo gave a fierce cry as he reappeared in the doorway and charged at Shad. The bookworm quickly redirected his rock shackle trap and the pitchfork man found his legs trapped. Romani fired a shot at Shad as this happened, but Ashei quickly fired another shot and deflected the first one. Shad proceeded to assault Ingo with air blades and then knock him flying back out the door with a burst of air.

"You won't outdo Team Lon!" Romani declared, firing a volley of arrows at the two remaining party members. Shad called up a wall of stone in front of both of them and the missiles clattered uselessly to the floor. Ashei jumped up, reaching the top of the wall as it descended into the floor again, and fired a bomb arrow at Romani. This caught her completely by surprise and the explosion knocked her into the wall behind her. She slumped into a heap.

"Sis…" she muttered before passing out. Shad went over and gave Rusl a red potion, bringing their stock down to 2.

"This left a bad taste in my mouth," the bookworm commented as Rusl sat up with a groan of discomfort. He looked around at the KO'd team. "I vote that we help them out after we defeat the dungeon master,"

"I agree," Rusl nodded. "This fight was born of a mistake," Ashei gave a sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. As long as they don't attack us again when they wake up," the archer shrugged. "Now can we go on to the portal?" It was the same as before, the same emblem, the same light, the same flash as they vanished and reappeared in an underground chamber that had a tree growing in the ceiling; its roots extending down the walls.

"This room reeks of compost," Shad observed, looking around.

"Indeed," Rusl agreed, looking around cautiously with sword drawn. "But where is the dungeon master?" His query was answered by a seven-and-a-half-foot figure descending from the ceiling with a shield that was as tall as it and a massive saber. Shad examined its tribal paint.

"This must be the Masked Jungle Warrior, Odolwa," he commented as it began to let out tribal war cries. "Be ready, he is a formidable foe," To prove the point, perhaps, Odolwa leapt forward and broad sided Ashei with his shield, sending her spinning away, before swinging its massive sword at Shad and Rusl. The former jumped away and whipped open his journal, readying a spell, as the latter brought up his own blade and blocked, holding the blade up with his free hand as well. Ashei rolled back to her feet and loosed a light arrow at the boss, impaling its arm with the holy projectile and making it shout in anger. Leaping back, Odolwa danced and chanted, causing a ring of fire to burst into being in midair and trap them. The warrior jumped away into the shadows as dozens of scarabs scuttled their way.

"I'll handle these!" Shad declared, opening a sinkhole in the floor and creating a whirlwind that came out of it, sucking the pests in. Ashei, meanwhile, notched an ice arrow and shot the fire, causing it to disappear into a ring of smoke. Odolwa dove out of the ceiling, landing in front of the archer and swinging downward. She rolled out of the way, but the warrior spun and kicked her backwards, sending her sprawling into a tree root that Shad commanded to stick out and catch her. Rusl attacked the warrior, being blocked by his shield and having to dodge to the side to avoid the counterstrike, as Ashei gave a nod of thanks to the bookworm and loosed a barrage of arrows. Odolwa hid behind its tower shield as the sharp missiles plunked against it, giving Shad time to call shards of stone from the ground behind him. Several lodged themselves in its back, making it roar in agony. He spun aggressively across the room, loosing locusts from, seemingly, nowhere, as it did so.

"Easily torched," Ashei fired a fire arrow into the swarm and it burst into a mighty conflagration in an amazing chain reaction. Rusl, meanwhile, was already on Odolwa, swinging, dodging, and countering, seemingly to little effect. As he dodged another strike, he jumped up on the blade and launched himself at the warrior's face, cutting deep into its shoulder and making its shield arm limp. Ashei and Shad, at that moment, discharged a simultaneous volley of arrows and ring of diagonal stalagmites. Rusl, quickly noticing this, bounded clear, allowing the jungle warrior to be speared at least 20 times. It roared and screamed, attacked from all sides and unable to do much of anything, its shield lying forgotten on the floor. Finally, it burst into dark smoke and faded away, leaving a blue ring of light behind.

"That was a good job," Shad commented, wiping his face. "Nice arrow work there, Ashei,"

"Well, I have to admit that you did the right thing with that root…" Ashei said, looking away and crossing her arms to try to retain some semblance of her usual attitude.

"All of us did exceedingly well," Rusl interjected. "Now, let us go and learn of everything that is going on,"

Once again, they found themselves in the giants' realm. The last giant stood in the distance.

_You have freed us all…thank you. Now, you will know everything._

The giant gave a loud moan and then enunciated a tune. The other three giants arrived, each at a cardinal direction from the platform that the three stood on.

"Oh, my word…" Shad said in amazement, seeing all the giants together in all of their glory for the first time.

"It's overwhelming, that's for sure," Rusl agreed.

"I can actually believe that these four created Termina," Ashei commented.

_Many ages ago, there was a cursed mask that was used by a dark tribe for their hexing rituals. However, fearing that calamity would come, the mask was sealed away and its location undisclosed. However…a foolish collector of masks unearthed it, years ago closer to the present, and it possessed a child of the forest. The mask called the moon to eradicate this land of Termina, and, over three days, it seemed that this would be so. The despair of the people was strong, and this gruesome end was all but certain, but then a boy arrived in Termina, as well as his mage companion._

Another giant began to talk.

_Link…Lucius…these two saw the threat and decided that the land could not be allowed to perish. Together, they, with a rancher girl and a thief boy, banded together to stop the moon and free us. After this was accomplished, the cursed mask was freed and the land sang rejoices throughout._

A third giant took the floor.

_However, while the mask was freed, the spirit of the evil one lived on. This spirit has lingered in the shadows for many years, and now grows in power again. By reviving the guardians, it has created despair and suffering. With this negative energy, it was able to spawn new, blacker monsters to further terrorize the people and sow fear and chaos._

The fourth giant started speaking.

_Though your efforts to save us were successful, the energy was already received and continues to flow, even as we speak. The time draws near when the ancient spirit of Majora reawakens, in its new form, Majora Chaos!_

All four giants began to chant.

_Majora! Majora! Curse your name!_

"Majora!" Shad exclaimed. "That is the ancient evil that has been so spoken of?"

"Nerd boy, you need a paper bag?" Ashei asked as she watched him blanch and hold his heart.

"If Majora indeed is behind the endeavors of late, what can we hope to do to stop it?" he continued, sounding faint.

"With the powers of despair on its side, the outlook looks grim…" Rusl added.

_Not all is lost. Though not as powerful as Majora, you three can still nurture hope in the people, even if they deny your help._

The trio looked up at the giants.

_In this land, there are twelve of you. Six seek the sacred jewels that contain our power. Three for good, three for ill, and, soon, they will have them all. You three, and the three you fought earlier, have a part to play in the great battle to come. Soon…you twelve will hold the fate…of the land…in your…hands…_

The giants turned and began to leave, enunciating the mysterious song that they seemed to like.

"Giants!" Shad called. "However shall we-" But they were already gone and the trio reappeared in front of the camera shop, the comatose team from earlier nearby.

"We're back," Shad sighed, looking at the others. "And now we know the truth," Romani began to stir. "A great deity of evil has returned and will soon eradicate the land," He put his head in his hands.

"How are we supposed to triumph over a thing like that?" Shad sat dejectedly on the ground, staring at the ground.

"You two act like we've already lost, yeah?" Ashei snapped, smacking them each in the back of the head. "Nothing's decided yet! The giants said that we and these guys," she gestured to Team Lon. "Still have a part to play, yeah? I'm not goin' down without a fight, and neither are you two, right?" She kicked Shad. "You're a bookworm, a nerd, and have way too many manners for your own good, but you've never given up before, even when you really would've rather, yeah?"

"Well…yes, but-" Shad began, looking surprised and slightly admiring.

"And Rusl, even when all the kids were stolen from your village, even your son, did you ever call it quits?" Ashei continued brusquely. "No, of course not! You strapped on your sword and went out on your own, yeah?" The other two began to stir as well.

"Ashei, that was a different situa-" Rusl too was cut off.

"No! This is the same!" Ashei waved her arm in annoyance. "You two are disheartened, that's natural, but if we quit before we try, it'll just make it worse, yeah?"

"You're right!" Romani sat up, wincing at her wounds and headache. "It's better to try and fail than to not try at all," Ingo sat up too.

"As much as I hate to admit it, the brat's right," he said, helping himself up with his pitchfork, being mindful of the prongs. "Even Talon can do something if he puts him mind to it. A snorting snore was his reply. Ingo stomped over and gave the fat rancher a hard kick in the side. "Wake up, you lazy good-for-nothing!"

"What in tarnation?" Talon jumped up, looking around.

"You are correct, as you usually are," Shad admitted, standing up. "When the time comes, we shall stand strong and hearten those who stare into the visage of darkness with no light to guide them,"

"Though not as powerful enough to even topple the three villains, we will not waver or fail, whatever comes in the future," Rusl drew his sword and raised it to the sky. "By Ordon's name, I will defend this world!"

"That's the spirit, yeah?" Ashei held out her hand. Shad clapped his hand over it and Rusl did the same.

"GO, TEAM EYE!" they shouted in unison, raising their hands aloft and broke the hold.

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**Of course, everybody knows that the giants' song is the Oath to Order. And, man, how overdramatic, huh? I thought that there was humor here...Anyway, review and tell me what you think and don't feel shy about voting on your favorite team. Just go to my profile page if you want to vote. And, yes, the whole "go, team!" thing will be in each story at least once. It's a custom! (audience throws fruit at corny custom)**


	12. Team Eye Level 8

**This chapter is more of a filler type of thing, if you want to mince words about it, but there's some character development and whatnot. I still own nothing.**

* * *

Level 8

Some milk later, Team Lon was well enough again to move.

"So…sorry about earlier, I guess we kinda jumped the bell," Romani apologized, scratching the back of her head and looking at the ground.

"Jumped it? Tarnation, girl! You didn't really even ask us!" Talon pointed out.

"My deepest apologies as well," Shad replied smoothly. "We should have been more pacifist and also,"

"Well, at least we got some good exercise, yeah?" Ashei said nonchalantly with a shrug.

"I'll say," Ingo interjected. "You fight like a demon, woman!" Ashei wasn't sure if this was a complement or not, so she settled for giving him a warning glare.

"Anyway, Romani was wondering if you have anywhere to stay for the night," Romani asked as the bell tolled 15:00 in the distance.

"Once again, the giants have stolen our time," Shad commented, deciding against asking about Romani's obvious problem with referring to herself in the third person.

"No, we cannot enter the city anymore," Rusl responded. "It is now under lockdown…until Majora decides to initiate the next part of its plan,"

"Well, then, feel free to stay at the Romani Ranch tonight," Romani offered. "It's the least Romani can do after the mix-up earlier,"

"Give 'em a kick in the shin is the least you can do…" Ingo mumbled under his breath in an agitated way.

"We would be honored to accept your kind offer, Romani," Shad replied kindly. "Please, lead the way,"

The six headed back north, up the trail. On the way, they encountered a few more Black Chuchus and Black Evil bats, but Ashei and Romani were able to decimate them before the party even closed in much.

"You're a good archer," the rancher girl commented to Ashei as they combined party continued on.

"I suppose I could say the same to you," Ashei replied flatly.

"I hate this swamp!" Ingo shouted from near the back of the group.

"I must admit, it is a rather uncomfortable location to travel through," Shad agreed. "But we'll be out soon enough,"

Dong! 15:30 arrived as they set foot in Termina Field again.

"The ranch is this way," Romani pointed to the left and led them through some tall grass.

"Watch out for hidden holes here, folks," Talon warned, nearly tripping into one himself almost immediately, causing yet another snide comment from Ingo. Once out of the tall grass, they headed for the wooden structures up ahead that marked the path to Romani Ranch.

"Hey, Romani!" they all looked over and saw Team Link running over from the eastern side of the field.

"Oh, no, Romani has been caught," Romani said with unease.

"Caught?" Rusl repeated. Link, Lucius, and Kafei finally met up with them.

"You aren't supposed to be out," Kafei stated as though it were fact.

"But Romani can't just let you guys run around doing stuff while Romani just sits at the ranch and hopes that her sister and cousin are all right!" the rancher girl protested.

"And shame on your uncle for letting this happen," Kafei continued coolly. Talon gave a snort and Ingo kicked him in the shin.

"What in tarnation?" Talon exclaimed, looking around. "What's the meaning of kicking me?"

"You're the subject of the conversation!" Ingo retorted.

"That's no reason to go around kicking people!" Talon snapped back. "I've been on my feet all day!" As they continued to argue on about how Ingo had to do chores and adventure, the others ignored the two and went back to what they were saying.

"Hey! You have no right to treat her like a kid, yeah?" Ashei stepped forward. "She's just as skilled as me or any other archer out there!"

"And her team is quite formidable," Shad added with a nod.

"Never underestimate even the smallest cog in the clock," Rusl interjected as well.

"I must agree," Lucius said in his soothing tones. "Romani has proven herself time and again alongside us. I don't know why she must remain idle,"

"Well, I actually just didn't want the ranch undefended while I was gone," Link admitted, scratching the back of his head as he took off his cap and held it in his hands.

"Really?" Romani was shocked. "Why didn't you tell Romani that?"

"In hindsight, maybe I should have," Link replied apologetically.

"But, would that have really stopped you from leaving?" Kafei pointed out. "You are headstrong, and wouldn't have taken 'no' for an answer. Telling you anything was a moot point. Perhaps we should have just left without a word,"

"Kafei, don't say stuff like that," Link said to the glum thief.

"Mayhap we should proceed to the ranch before further conversation," Shad suggested, watching Ingo and Talon as they now grappled on the ground, kicking and biting with the occasional punch.

"Romani agrees," the rancher girl acquiesced as Rusl, Ashei, Link, and Kafei went over to break them up.

A few minutes and a couple of scrapes and bruises later, they were walking grumpily with the rest of the party. Ingo, to say the least, was smug about how Talon now didn't show a bit of drowsiness. Heading up the dirt road, they heard the toll of 16:00.

"So, Link, what have you been up to of late?" Rusl asked the green-clad hero, now wearing his cap again.

"Well, we headed to the swamp and fought with the villain team, but they managed to beat a couple of us and take the jewel, so we had to hide in the Woods of Mystery until I could fetch potions to revive them. Then-" Link continued on, all the way down the road and didn't finish until they were almost at the ranch house at 16:30.

"…so we just left them, took the jewel, and headed back to Clock Town. But it was locked down and we couldn't get in, so we headed over here," Link concluded.

"So your team has one jewel and theirs has two," Rusl deduced. "This news is a bit troubling,"

"Finally! I'm going to fix a big dinner for everyone!" Talon ran inside the house.

"Hey!" Ingo protested. "You're not sticking me with the animal chores again!" He stood there for a moment, getting no reply, and stomped off to the barn, muttering threats.

"Romani will help cook," Romani declared, going inside the house as well.

After this, the party each went their separate ways to wait for dinner. Lucius went inside to chat with Talon and Romani, assuming they weren't too busy to reply. Ashei drifted off to some remote corner of the ranch. Kafei just plain disappeared and no one could find him or wanted to try. Link and Rusl took a walk around the ranch, chatting, and Shad was left standing by the farmhouse.

"Alas, the loneliness that any scholar would fancy having, yet I feel compelled to seek out companionship this day," Shad mused aloud. He set off across the ranch as well.

"So Link, only one jewel remains, and, from what I hear, it's in Ikana Canyon," Rusl commented.

"Yes, we'll be going there tomorrow," Link nodded. "We can't let the other team one-up us," Rusl gave a small grin.

"Just be careful out there," the swordsman warned.

"Come on, sensei, do I ever forget my lessons at a critical moment?" Link also smiled.

"No, I suppose not…" Rusl still tried to resemble a stern master, but soon broke down into laughter. His student soon followed suit.

"Stupid, lazy Talon, sticking me with the chores all the time…" Ingo grumbled, putting hay in the proper place and storing the freshly milked milk in jars properly.

"Everyone has a job to do," Kafei stated from his position in the rafters. How he got up there was probably a thief trade secret. Ingo jumped and looked up.

"What in tarnation are you doing hanging around and scaring people?" the ranch hand demanded.

"I'm sitting up here," Kafei replied as though it were obvious. "I just felt compelled to speak on your inane muttering. Pay me no heed if you wish," Ingo turned red at the obvious calmness, wanting to explode, but decided to take the advice and get back to work.

"Job to do, my left shoe…" he grumbled. Kafei ignored him and looked out the upper window at the sky, wondering when he'd get to see his beloved Anju again and why he was even on this journey.

_Friendship…that's why, right?_

Shad continued his quiet walk, looking around at the scenery and trying to enjoy the sight of cows grazing and the scent of hay and manure. Failing on the last part, he decided to, instead, devote his attention to not stepping in anything disgusting. That's how he came upon Ashei, leaning against a wall, just past the dog track, and sitting in the grass, one leg stretched out and the other bent for support. She propped her left arm on said bent leg. Shad stopped and looked at her as she stared at the sky pensively, her drooping pigtails moving slightly in the breeze, and wondered how someone could be so at peace in trying times.

"What is it, nerd boy?" she asked, bringing him back to reality.

"Oh, nothing. I was merely passing by on a walk of leisure," the bookworm replied. Ashei nodded and went back to staring at the sky. After a few moments, he was still standing there, staring.

"If you don't quit staring, I'm going to shoot out your eyes," He couldn't tell whether she was joking or not, so decided to avert his gaze.

"My apologies, I was just wondering what is on your mind," Shad responded.

"Hmph, you were, huh?" she gave him a shrewd look and then patted the grass next to her. "Have a seat, city boy, you need to learn how sit on the ground,"

"As though I haven't learned that in battle," Shad mock-complained, complying nonetheless, sitting cross-legged. They both sat there a while, looking contemplatively off into the distance. "So what are you thinking?"

"How I should sew your mouth shut so you can't keep talking and ruining my relaxation," she said without looking a him.

"You are capable of sewing?" Shad asked, looking surprised, for once.

"Not well, but enough to get the job done," she pointed to the clumsy repair stitch work on her clothes, in several spots, for emphasis. They usually visited a tailor if they were in town, but, obviously, her clothes had gotten damaged before and had had to be repaired, somehow…

"Why did you conceal this fact from us? We could have saved rupees," Shad asked.

"Humph…" Ashei closed her eyes and finally averted her gaze, looking away from Shad and the sky. "I'm not proud of knowing such girly stuff, yeah?" Shad's eyebrows shot up. Was she…actually blushing?

"My word, if Ashei isn't blushing from my comments!" he teased, knowing that he was poking a bomb, so to speak.

"Can it, nerd, or I will fill you so full of arrows that your great-grandson will wonder why he hurts all the time, yeah?" she jumped up and got out her bow, her face now flushed crimson with anger and embarrassment.

"Whoa, now!" Shad jumped up too, taking a step back and holding his hands out defensively. "There's nothing wrong with knowing how to sew! It's admirable and useful talent,"

"I'm not a girly woman! I hate girly, yeah?" Ashei raged at him. "Don't ever suggest that again, yeah?"

"Who's suggesting anything?" Shad said in alarm. "Extra talents don't take away from your abilities as a warrior. If anything, you take your role as a descendant of a Hylian knight too seriously!" He gestured at the bow that she held in his direction. "Look at you now! You are aiming an arrow at someone because they made a crack at you. Is that knightly, or just a confused person?" Ashei's gritted teeth, angry expression, and clenched jaw didn't change, but she lowered her weapon and put it away without a word.

"Whatever! Just leave me be, yeah?" she snapped, turning away.

"Very well, but you needn't be frightened to study things that are "girly", however much you detest those who are overly-feminine at times and jabber on pointlessly about such things as trends and cosmetics. They don't make you any less you. In fact, they can be incorporated in without making you what you so dislike," He gave a little bow, pointless yes, but he was still a gentleman and some habits die hard, and headed back up to the house.

"Shad…" she muttered, sitting back down.

The bell tolled 17:00 as supper was ready.

"Finally," Lucius put the finishing touches on his elixir soup that he had perfected over the years and poured nine bowls, putting them on the table and the extra table, which Talon and Romani had brought out of the attic to allow more people to gave a spot to sit.

"I have to admit, I'm glad you came," Talon commented. "I never knew how to make much but cheese soup and roasted cow,"

"I'm always happy to share my recipes with others," Lucius smiled a little at the complement. "Romani, would you be so kind as to summon the others?"

"Romani would feel privileged," Romani went over and seized the large bell that hung on the wall. Going out the door, she began to ring it vigorously, its sound echoing all over the ranch.

"Is that the dinner bell?" Link and Rusl showed up almost immediately.

"Yep! Come and get it!" Romani replied, allowing them entrance. Ingo showed up next, coming over from the outdoor shower that was concealed by wooden walls, behind the barn.

"About time!" he grumbled, shuffling in the house. Kafei jumped off the roof of the farmhouse and went through the door without a word. Shad arrived next, looking a bit down, but he went in anyway.

"What's up, Shad?" Link asked, already at the table with the others.

"It's nothing," he forced a smile. "What are we having? It smells heavenly,"

"Elixir soup," Lucius put a bowl down at a table for him. The bookworm sat down and stared at the golden broth.

"Where's Ashei?" Rusl asked.

"I'm sure she's about somewhere," Shad replied evasively. Just then, the aforementioned female walked in the door.

"There you are," Lucius commented, handing her a bowl. She took it without a word and slumped into a seat across from Shad, eating without looking up. Her face showed no difference from usual, but that meant little.

_Have I truly offended her, or will she forgive my transgression and let it alone?_

"Sorry, no leads yet, and it's kinda hard to look, anyway, since the villains are always one step behind us," Link said to Romani.

"Well, Romani has searched everywhere. She might as well retire," the rancher girl slumped.

"Now, now, Romani, there's no reason to be talkin' like that," Talon interjected. "We may be out of places to look, but that don't mean a thing!"

"If you truly care, you'll find them, in the end," Kafei said darkly. This thief really did have a way of veiling things in pessimism. Of course, considering his sad back story with Anju and the moon, it wasn't surprising.

The meal ended around 17:30 and most of the myriad of people decided to go about looking into sleeping arrangements. Kafei, of course, slipped away after about a minute, disliking the noise. Ashei left too, not really into interior decorating all that much. Shad, after being almost bowled over by moving furniture a few times, decided that he would leave the house for a while too.

"Why so glum?" Ashei stopped cold as Kafei's voice came out of the shadows beside the barn.

"Buzz off, yeah?" she retorted.

"I suppose that Shad person offended you somehow, right?" the thief continued calmly.

"Shut up!" she kicked a rock at him, but he dodged it easily.

"It's natural to be hurt when someone close to you oversteps their bounds," Kafei looked up at the sky thoughtfully. "I know that better than anyone, but you can't carry a grudge around too long. To err is human, after all,"

"Humph…" Ashei looked away and crossed her arms. "So you're trying to get me to make up with the nerd?"

"No," Kafei looked back at her with his piercing brown eyes. "Making up doesn't mean a thing if you're still angry. If you really want to make up properly, you'll have to open up a little and tell him why you're so upset and you have to let him apologize properly,"

"Easy for you to say, yeah?" she snapped. "Me and nerd boy don't just talk,"

"I know, you two are the type of friends that never tire of baiting one another," Kafei said knowingly. "And talking in a civilized manner is something that is difficult in the best of relationships," He looked thoughtful for a minute. "In any case, he is hurt, and so are you. Speak to him, and keep it civil. At the very least, you may sweep the issue under the rug and have relative peace…for a while," He turned to leave.

"Talking to you is hard work," Ashei commented.

"So I've been told," Kafei allowed himself a smile so small that it was almost unnoticeable and then he ran off.

"Well, old girl, I suppose that I've bungled," Shad said to Epona, stroking her nose through the bars of her fence that kept her penned, careful not to damage a sleeve on the spikes. "There are times that I just can't comprehend that woman. But we're just opposites, she and I. However shall I make up for…what did I do?"

"She's got an explosive personality, I've always said," Rusl had just come out of the house, finally tired of trying to help arrange beds and couches. "I think you just set it off again and are blowing it out of proportion, just as she did," Shad told the story. Rusl gave a single chuckle. "Ah, that's what it was. Well, you said the right thing there, but I don't know how long the typical awkwardness will last. The last time this happened with Uli and I, we couldn't look at each other for a week! Ho, ho, ho!"

"Ashei and I are not a couple!" Shad protested hotly, his face flushing at the mere suggestion.

"Of course not, you'd kill each other before the wedding! Ho, ho, ho!" Rusl laughed.

"You're not aiding me a whit!" the bookworm pushed past the swordsman. "I am going to find her, and you best stay out of the way,"

"All right, lover boy!" Rusl laughed and headed back in the house, his mood sufficiently risen.

"What's all this about you being a lover boy?" Ashei asked suddenly. Shad stopped abruptly, inches from a collision.

"Oh, our companion is teasing me with a yarn lacking humor," the bookworm replied. "On another subject, my deepest apologies again for earlier. I didn't mean any insult,"

"I know that, yeah?" Ashei punched him lightly in the shoulder. He was surprised that it wasn't a real punch. "I just got carried away,"

"Carried away? You had a bow in my face!" Shad smiled jokingly.

"Well, they say that if you're gonna do something, go the whole fifty paces," the archer smirked slightly, but it quickly faded.

"My, I think that Ashei just smiled!" Shad taunted, feigning absolute shock. "I best be very nerdy and make a note of it in a journal!" Ashei turned slightly pink and looked away.

"Shut up, yeah?"

"Shutting up," Shad complied, still smiling. The clock tolled 18:00 in the distance.

**Night of the Fourth Day**

"Well, we best be getting to sleep," Shad commented after the tolling had ended. "I have the feeling that we will be most busy on the morrow,"

"Right," Ashei agreed. "Let's go see if those guys have finished with the sleeping arrangements yet," They began to walk to the house. "And, Shad?"

"Yes?" he looked at her, surprised that she said his name for once.

"Tell anybody about this little moment, and I'll pin you to a tree for a day," she replied casually, walking ahead. Shad looked flabbergasted.

"T-That was a joke, right? Right, Ashei?" he hurried after her.

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**I believe that this is the real next-to-last chapter of Team Eye's Story. The climax is coming up and we will see how their side of the battle goes. Review and let me know what you thought of this chapter, now, and don't forget that you can still vote on your favorite team on my profile page (unless, of course, you already have). And I am laughing at this little exchange at the end. Ashei is so funny in her own right, especially when Shad is involved :)**


	13. Team Eye Level 9

**This is it, the final chapter of this team's story. Don't despair, though, every team will return in the Final Story and, who knows, maybe I'll make a spin-off with one or two of them...I still own nothing!**

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Level 9

Arrangements, as a bruised and bloody Ingo informed them, were not good.

"We can only hold five or six in the house," the grumpy farm hand informed the combined teams. "Three or four will have to sleep in the barn,"

"I call!" Link shouted.

"I do too!" Lucius added.

"And I," Kafei said.

"Romani, too!" Romani interjected.

"And I ain't sleepin' in the barn!" Ingo shouted. Talon was already snoozing on the floor, so they knew where he'd sleep.

"Looks like we get the barn," Rusl sighed, looking to his comrades and starting out the door.

"The barn?" Shad repeated, looking very unhappy. "But think of the disease and dirt!" Ashei grabbed his arm and dragged him along.

"Come on, city boy…" she muttered, rolling her eyes at his antics.

"I beg of you!" was the last hammed up thing that the other six heard before the door shut.

**Dawn of the Fifth Day**

The bells and rooster sounded at dawn, as usual, that day. Rusl roused himself and walked out of the barn, brushing hay from his outfit, as he went out for his morning walk. Being here reminded him of his hometown of Ordon and he smiled reminiscently. Shad was the next to wake up.

"How appalling!" he cried out, standing and beginning to brush hay off of his person. "I'm fairly certain that this dead grass has permeated my very being,"

"Stop being such a drama queen," Ashei grunted, rolling over and trying to ignore the sunlight that poured in the above window and the door.

"You guys!" Romani came bursting in the door. Ashei was up and had her bow in her hand in a second. "Link's team is gone!"

"Gone?" Shad repeated, abandoning his preening for the time being.

"Yes, and they left a note," the rancher girl said, distressed. "Come in for breakfast and read it," Ashei grumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and donned her armor as Shad went back to grooming himself.

Team Eye and Team Lon all sat at the table, eating scrambled cucco eggs and roasted beef with a cup of milk each, talking over the letter that now sat in the center of the table. It was written in Lucius's untidy, but graceful script.

_Dear Romani, _

_We have left for Ikana Canyon early, so as to get a head start on Team Shadows. Don't worry, we'll be back by the end of the day._

_Best wishes, Lucius _

"Well, they left early and they'll be back," Rusl concluded. "Why are you so distressed?"

"Romani doesn't know," Romani shrugged. "Maybe Romani was looking forward to seeing them in the morning before they took off again,"

"If they'll be back, they'll be back," Ingo interjected. "Now let's hurry up and eat! You two are helping me with the chores today!"

"Right…" Romani agreed.

"Okay," Talon yawned. Ashei, Shad, and Rusl all exchanged a look that clearly stated that they expected him to be asleep pretty soon, maybe even in the middle of a chore.

Team Eye left Team Lon to their chores as they set off across the rolling grass of the ranch.

"It's been a while since we had a day off," Rusl commented as the bell rang 07:00 in the distance.

"To think that we haven't anywhere pressing to be this day. It's almost heartening in and of itself," Shad said with a smile.

"Yeah, but with our luck, that won't last long," Ashei predicted darkly.

"Don't ruin the mood," Shad replied. "Let's just enjoy this day while it lasts," They walked a circuit of the ranch perimeter, chatting about small things, before passing the barn and, predictably, spotting Talon napping outside it, sitting on a sack of corn.

"You lazy oaf!" Ingo came running out with a sack of corn and hit Talon upside the head with his free hand.

"What in tarnation?" Talon yelled, jumping up.

"Get that corn to the chicken coop!" Ingo screamed, waving his free hand in the air.

"Right, I'm on it," Talon yawned, running off towards the coop.

"Well, at least Romani's never bored around those two," Ashei noted flatly. Said rancher finished milking the cows in the barn at this moment and let them loose. Team Eye jumped to the side as the bovine stampede went by and out to the field to graze. The clock tolled 09:00 as they watched quietly.

"I do wonder what Link is up to at the moment," Shad mused out loud.

"Probably fighting with the villains again," Rusl replied with a shrug. "I just wonder if the monsters returned to the area,"

"We killed the boss there, yeah? There shouldn't be anything else there," Ashei answered.

"True, but the recent influx of black monsters could have refilled the areas we cleared of threat," Shad deduced.

So they crossed the ranch again, coming, at length, to the dog race track.

"What need for this does a ranch have?" Shad wondered aloud.

"Who knows?" Ashei replied, looking disinterested. "I don't really care for dogs, myself, yeah? They're annoying," They finally decided to sit down on the ground, forming a small ring. Shad whipped out a book after a moment, seeing as nothing was being said. Ashei decided to restring and check her bow. Rusl simply looked up at the sky, closing his eyes, and savored the pure joy of being outdoors. They stayed this way until 10:00.

"Has it been an hour already?" Shad looked up from his book.

"Yep," Ashei replied, putting her bow away. "I'm getting bored," Rusl ignored them, to all appearances.

"Well, I'm returning to the farmhouse," Shad said, standing. "Anyone care to accompany me?" Suddenly, a thick veil of cloud blew in overhead. "Hello, what's this?"

"It's not good, whatever it is," Rusl rose and looked up.

"Look over there!" Ashei pointed northeast. An ominous aura hung in the sky.

"My word, that looks and feels awful," the bookworm blanched slightly. "It must be Majora,"

"So today is the day that Majora makes its move…" Rusl muttered. "So be it. Let's get Team Lon and go," They ran off across the ranch as a cold and bitter rain began to fall. Lightning flashed threateningly across the sky.

"We've gotta get over there immediately!" Talon declared.

"Right! Let's go, Lanky and Stout!" Romani ran off with Ingo and Talon following.

"They're a step ahead," Shad observed.

The trio continued out of the ranch, beating off the Black Chuchus and Black Guays that kept appearing from the ground and rock around them. Finally, they reached Termina Field.

"Clock Town is on fire!" Rusl yelled at the debacle before them. "Come on!" They carved into the mass of Black Gibdos, Black Leevers, Black Chuchus, and various other dark enemies as they fought their way up to the demolished south gate. The clock tolled 11:00 as they got to the gate, only to be accosted by a Black Cyclops.

"Shad, trap!" Ashei shouted. "Romani, with me!" Shad wasted no time in trapping the raging giant in a sinkhole, inches before it clubbed him with its massive fist. Ashei and Romani both fired a simultaneous light arrow into its eye. It flailed and screamed before falling with a crash. Rusl, Ingo, and Talon knocked out several more enemies as the hordes of darkness kept coming.

"Into the town! We're overmatched!" Shad shouted, leading the way in. More of the same were plaguing the Town Guard within. Several guards were beating off Black Gibdos and Black Stalfos in the south section of town.

"Fight! Fight to the last man!" Viscen was yelling from in front of the clock tower, where he stood tall among the corpses of many monsters, a golden spear in hand. "Protect the citizenry!" The two teams waded in and decimated the foes in a few minutes.

"Get to East Clock Town and fortify the sewers!" Viscen ordered the soldiers in the area. "I don't want anything getting through!" The guards saluted and ran off towards North Clock Town, planning to take a shortcut around the brunt of the battle," The guard captain then approached Team Eye as Team Lon ran off to East Clock Town. "So we meet again on the field of battle,"

"Yes, though you didn't ask us to help," Rusl replied gravely.

"My apologies for my harsh words before," Viscen said briskly. "Further amends can be made if and when we get out of this mess," A great crash sounded from East Clock Town. "I must go command the troops now. Do what you will to help the people," He saluted and ran off. Team Eye turned and saw still more monsters making their way through the gate. Shad blasted them back with an earthquake.

"Let's go check West Clock Town for survivors, yeah?" Ashei suggested. Rusl nodded and they dashed off.

The street was full of monsters. This side of town was practically abandoned. The trio fought their way down the street, checking in each shop, but they were all empty, even the post office and sword school.

"People of Clock Town! Why do you resist?" an eerie, female voice suddenly boomed throughout the town. "Your destruction is inevitable,"

"My word, what is that horrible voice?" Shad and the others looked to the sky.

"Submit to your fate, the fate that you avoided all those years ago, when the moon failed to fall," the voice continued.

"It's coming from the direction of the clock tower, yeah?" Ashei pointed out. Without further ado, they headed there will all haste.

They arrived at the same time as Team Lon and Team Shadows. Team Link was already there, looking up at the tower as though they saw something. Indeed, there was a distant figure atop the landmark.

"Majora!" Rusl called up the tower. "Come down! Take what justice awaits you!"

"Majora!" the other heroes and villains, except Shad and Ashei, exclaimed, looking at him.

"Her emblem is on every one of these black monsters," Shad pointed to a fallen Black Gibdos and, sure enough, the Majora emblem was emblazoned under its chin.

"Very impressive. Most warriors wouldn't have seen that and just moved on after making the kill," Majora's Wrath came drifting down to land in front of them. Yet, it wasn't Majora's Wrath, the whips were gone from her arms and the face was more defined. More muscle tone and a deeper and darker power emanated from this body.

"Majora…I saw you die," Link grimaced.

"Did you?" she taunted. "I am a cursed deity, I won't die so easily! Even the Fierce Deity can't defeat me now!" She raised her hand. "Now feel the power of Majora Chaos!" Dark versions of Odolwa and Goht entered from the gate and tackled Team Lon, carrying them away into East Clock Town.

"Beast!" Ashei launched an arrow at Majora, but it bounced off of her flesh without leaving a mark.

"You are powerless!" she declared, rising up and hurtling a large blast of dark energy at the ground. All nine sprang aside, but Team Eye fell into the resulting pit as it filled rapidly with rainwater. "Now face this!" A Dark version of Gyorg fell from the sky and splashed into the water. "And you three pathetic excuses for villains,"

"What?" Ganondorf shouted indignantly.

"You too will feel my power!" she blasted them out the gate and into Termina Field. The ground under the pit crumbled and Team Eye, as well as Black Gyorg, went tumbling into an underground pit. Ironically, it was a crude imitation of the boss chamber at the Great Bay Temple. Ashei sputtered as she scrambled onto the rock outcropping in the middle of the cave. Shad and Rusl got gingerly to their feet, trying to ignore the water pouring in from above.

"Such an intelligent tactic," Shad commented. "Separating all of us so as to raise the odds of her victory," Black Gyorg suddenly jumped out of the water and passed over the platform, firing lightning bolts from its horn. They all managed to dodge the forks, and Ashei fired a light arrow at it, managing to nick the tail fin before it submerged itself again.

"He definitely couldn't do that before," Ashei noted. The platform suddenly lurched as the monster smashed into the side, making part of it cave in. Rusl jumped back off of the part that crumbled.

"If we don't hurry, we'll be swimming with the fishes, no pun," the swordsman commented. Shad chugged one of their remaining two green potions and created a whirlpool that the enemy had to struggle to escape from. Ashei fired several fire arrows into Black Gyorg's eye, but it seemed to only hurt it enough to irritate it. Finally, with a roar, the boss broke free and jumped low over the platform, knocking Shad into the water. Ashei took a shot at the boss, but missed. Shad broke the surface, coughing, and tried to make it back to the platform, but the boss grabbed his leg in its teeth and pulled him under, slamming him into the bottom of the pool multiple times.

"Shad!" Rusl dived into the water, sword in hand, and swam down to where the boss was bludgeoning the bookworm to death. Acting quickly, he grabbed onto the monster's back and stabbed it in the eyes several times until it let the mangled Shad go. Ashei jumped in when he resurfaced and swam over, dragging him back to the rock outcropping. Gasping, she put him down and saw the deep bite grooves in his torso, as well as the blood trickling out of the side of his mouth.

"Blast it, city boy," she muttered, pulling out a vial of red potion, leaving one, and forcing it down his throat as Rusl struggled with the boss, which had started to try to actively buck him off. The gargantuan fish started ramming its back against the wall, smashing the swordsman repeatedly. He started to fade in and out of consciousness from the blunt impacts. Ashei, seeing this, rose and fired a light arrow into the monster's underside, making it screech piercingly and disappear underwater, leaving Rusl to swim back quickly.

"Oh, my…" Shad sat up. "Where are we?"

"In the middle of a battle, nerd boy, so get up," Ashei snapped as the boss rammed the platform, causing only half to be left. She launched arrows into the water when it neared the surface, but couldn't really get a clear shot.

"It must be getting tired, that's why it's trying to stay hidden," Rusl deduced, ignoring his sore body and aching head.

"I'll flush it out," Shad said assuredly. "With the Lightning Trap Sphere," He held his hand aloft and formed a ball of lightning while chanting arcane words. "Now, learn your limits!" He hurled the sphere into the air and it fired several bolts of lightning into the water, electrifying it and causing much pain to Black Gyorg. In an attempt to get away from the unbearable agony, it jumped out of the water repeatedly, allowing Ashei many opportunities to pepper it with pot shots. She lodged several light arrows in many different places on its body, but it just wouldn't die and came rushing at them again. Rusl, in an act of genius or stupidity, threw his sword at it. The fish stopped and slid into the platform, its head resting limply, as it died.

"Of course! The momentum of the monster and your throw gave your blade sufficient penetration!" Shad exclaimed brightly. The room began to shake and rocks started to fall from the roof.

"Any ideas on how to get out of here, city boy?" Ashei looked at him. "I, for one, don't want to die with you. The goddesses might put me in nerd heaven," Rusl slapped his forehead at the completely out of place wisecrack.

"I have a trick or two left, yes," his hand began to glow. "We will live to defeat Majora, yet,"

"To defend Termina, and save Clock Town, we will not fail," Rusl affirmed as the stone under them began to rise quickly.

"Come hell or high water, Team Eye doesn't fail," Ashei held out her hand.

"I always presumed that you detested that," Shad said, surprised, as he put away his journal, holding the spell with the other hand, and put his free hand on hers.

"Well, it's the end of the world, might as well do something silly first, yeah?" she shrugged as Rusl put his hand on top of theirs.

"GO, TEAM EYE!" they declared as they arrived at the surface.

End Team Eye Story

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**Next is Team Lon. That'll be a challenge to do, both because I'll have to check back over two other stories now and because they...don't do that much, really. Expect a lot of fighting and farm chores, as well as-(audience starts to leave) Okay, just bear with me and I'll try to make it funny. Also, remember to review so that I know how I'm doing and you can still vote on your favorite team on my profile page. Go Team Eye!**


	14. Team Lon Level 1

**Ah, exceedingly low on action and hard to deal with because of the rancher stereotypes and Romani's speech problem. Well, I'll stick with this team if you will. I still own nothing!**

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Team Lon Story

Level 1

**Dawn of the First Day**

"From what we gather, that was the last time that anyone around here was Cremia or Malon," Kafei reported flatly. "The cart was empty, so I'd assume they'd been kidnapped,"

"Well, the Gorman brothers were stealing the milk when they arrived," Lucius pointed out as Romani looked to him. "But I upon interrogation, they swore that the cart was empty when they arrived," Romani stared, downcast, at the table, where her empty plate still was. Link put a hand on her shoulder and gave one of his dorky but loveable smiles.

"Don't worry, Romani. We'll find her," he reassured her.

"Actually…we're supposed to go hunting for the sacred jewels, so as to keep them out of harm's way," Kafei reminded him.

"But you can't just abandon Romani's sister and cousin!" Romani protested.

"Don't worry, if we find any leads during our trip, we'll look into them," Lucius said assuredly with a polite smile and nod.

"I doubt we will…" Kafei muttered under his breath as he headed for the door. "Well, we won't be getting back to sleep today, so we best be heading to Clock Town so that we can prepare for our journey,"

"All right, I'm coming," Link stood. "Stay here, Romani, the ranch needs you to take care of it, even with Ingo and Talon in from Hyrule,"

"We'll see you later, Romani," Lucius added as the team headed out the door. "Leave the hunt to us!"

"Hey!" Romani protested, but they were already gone. _How dare they imply that Romani can't do anything on her own, especially after she helped them save Termina! She'll show them! _She viciously began to wash up the dishes, surprisingly not breaking one in the process.

"And that finishes that," Ingo said proudly as the clock rang 07:00, placing the last milk jug in place in the barn. His self-triumph was disturbed a loud, obnoxious snore behind him. He spun and, sure enough, there was Ingo, his supposed boss, sleeping the day away on a bale of hay, the lazy guy. Ingo looked scandalized. "Hey, you lazy fat lummox!" He ran over and kicked him off of the bale. "Wake up, blast it!"

"What in tarnation?" Talon sat up and rubbed his head, stifling a yawn with his other hand. "Can't a guy get a little shuteye around here?"

"We're running a ranch, not the Bombachu Bowling Alley!" Ingo raged, waving his hands around and stomping his feet. "Now get a sack of corn and lug it to the chicken pen!"

"Right…'m on it…" Talon mumbled sleepily, dragging himself over to the pile of feed bags and throwing a bag over his shoulder before trudging out the barn door and over the fields. Epona neighed as he passed the house. "Hey, Epona!" he called, still trying to clear his eyes. Ingo came grumbling out of the barn a minute later with some oats for Epona.

"Lousy, good-for-nothing, fat…" his string of insulting adjectives continued as he put the feed bag on the horse and refilled her water basin. "And where the devil is Romani?" he interrupted his own complaints. "If she's slacking off too, I'll give her what for!" He stomped into the house.

"Romani'll show them!" she slammed the cabinet after putting the last dish away. "Romani'll take Stout and Lanky with her and look! And our team will be way better than Team Link!"

"What are you ranting about? We have chores to do here!" Ingo demanded. "Ranches don't run themselves!"

"Well, get your chores done, 'cause Romani's taking you on a trip!" Romani retorted. "We're going to Snowhead, and that's final!"

"Why Snowhead?" Talon asked, coming in the door to grab something for Grog to eat. Turned out that he didn't leave the coop the previous night, if ever.

"Why not? Now get out your parkas!" Romani went upstairs and started digging around for a travel satchel and said parkas that the ranch had on the off chance that a bad winter came by and they needed to tend to the animals in the cold.

"Golly, that girl is plum crazy sometimes…" Talon commented. "Reminds me of my late wife, actually…" he drifted off into happy memories of frolicking with his wife around Lon Lon Ranch.

"I hate to interrupt your daydreams, well not really, but she's throwing about twelve bottles of milk in the bag, and all our food!" Ingo shouted, going over to try and stop her.

"Back off, Lanky! We need provisions!" Romani hit him over the head with her bow, which, apparently, she'd dug out of the closet.

"Agh! Crazy bat!" Ingo retreated strategically as she put the satchel on her person.

"You have until 09:00 to finish your chores!" she informed them, shoving them out of the house against their protests. "Now go!" She slammed the door.

"Yep, just like my wife…" Talon started to go into lala land again, but Ingo smacked him across the back of the head.

"Enough with the dead wife! Help me put the cows to pasture and collect the eggs!" the ranch hand barked.

"Okay, okay, golly…" Talon muttered, walking off with Ingo to the barn.

The clock finally tolled 09:00 and the two presented themselves in front of the farmhouse as Romani came out. Ingo carried his pitchfork; Talon yawned.

"Okay, from this point forward, Romani declares us Team Lon, in honor of my lost cousin's ranch!" Romani grabbed one of the others' hands and put them together before putting her hand on top. "GO, TEAM LON!" she shouted at close range, making the other two recoil and complain.

"Tarnation, girl!"

"My blasted ears!"

So they set out from the ranch, shutting the gate behind them to dissuade any bandits, aka the Gorman Brothers, from making off with anything while they were gone.

"Now, remember, Team Link is in town, so we won't be going there," Romani said happily as they walked down the dirt path of Milk Road.

"So, basically, you want us to hoof it all the way to Snowhead, freeze our butts off there, and then hoof it all the way back here, all without going to town for food or supplies?" Ingo asked unhappily.

"That's the plan!" Romani replied cheerfully. Ingo resisted the urge to throw his pitchfork through something. Talon watched this exchange with little interest. All he wanted was a quick nap and he'd be fine.

At length, they came to Termina Field as the clock tolled 09:30.

"So its around Clock Town and north from there. Come on, guys!" Romani set off at a brisk pace, the crotchety farm hand and lazy farmer in tow. As they passed a nearby tree, however, a large bird swooped out of it and grabbed Ingo's pitchfork before starting to fly away.

"Hey! That blasted Takkuri got my pitchfork!" he raged. "Somebody kill it!" Romani whipped out her bow and sniped the bird, causing it to drop the pitchfork and screech prior to smashing into the wall of Clock Town and lying limp on the ground. Ingo ran over and picked his implement back up. "Mine…" he muttered, holding it close. Romani and Talon gave him a look before they decided to ignore this odd behavior and press on. So they passed the west gate of the town, and continued their circumvention until they came to the snowy area that was the northern part of Termina Field.

"I can already tell that this will be a fun trip," Ingo grumbled. Romani turned and put her hands on her hips.

"Well, suck it up! Romani's sister might be in the mountains somewhere!" the rancher girl scolded.

"What in tarnation is that thing?" Talon pointed at the Dodongo below.

"I don't know, but it's not friendly," Ingo replied.

"Romani knows how to take care of this!" Romani whipped out a bomb arrow.

"Now, darlin' be careful with that thing," Talon seemed genuinely alarmed, for once, and he and Ingo retreated a safe distance.

"Romani knows what she's doing!" the rancher girl, not really a girl anymore, really, said loudly. The Dodongo roared and turned their way. "Uh, oh," it inhaled to breathe fire at her but, in her haste to get out of the way, she accidentally fired the bomb arrow down its windpipe. It started to choke and flail and then the bomb went off and it just collapsed with smoke coming from its mouth. Romani looked shocked for a moment but put on a smile as her allies came back over to investigate the aftermath. "Just like Romani planned," she said assuredly.

"Yeah, you made a lot of noise on purpose and then shot down its throat without any thought of running away," Ingo replied sarcastically.

"Shut up and follow Romani," Romani grumbled, leading the way down the hill and through the light layer of snow, and then to the foothills of Snowhead.

"It's plum blocked by all this ice," Talon pointed out. Indeed, many icy stalagmites blocked the way. "We ain't meltin' this easy," They all thought for a minute. The bell indicated that it was 10:30.

"Romani knows!" she fired a fire arrow into the ice.

"Like that'll…work…" Ingo trailed off as the ice steamed and melted rapidly, finally leaving the snowy path open. After grumbling, he got out the parkas and passed them around. Apparently, he was the current bag boy.

"This parka's toasty warm…makes me wanna take a nap…" Talon commented. Ingo smacked the back of his head.

"Don't you dare! I'm not digging you out of the snow!" the ranch hand barked.

The blizzard came on them quickly as they walked up the path, dodging a snowball that sat in the way.

"How in blasted tarnation are we supposed to navigate this?" Ingo complained as he squinted to see ahead. He was ignored and they continued to trudge up the mountain. Eventually, they met several large snowballs that completely blocked the path. "Well, we can't go any further. Let's head ba…ck…" Ingo stomped a little as Romani melted the snowballs, resisting the urge to brutally destroy her bow. Moving on, the trio finally came out into a clearing as the clock tolled 11:00.

"Look, Romani sees a house!" she pointed at the large house ahead. Smoke poured out of its chimney. "Maybe they know something," She led the way over.

"Is this all we're doing? Questioning the locals?" Ingo muttered darkly. Romani knocked on the door and a guy with squinty eyes opened it.

"Can I help you?" he asked. A loud grunt came from behind him, startling Team Lon, but the squinty guy turned and shouted over his shoulder. "Quiet, you!"

"We're looking for two red-heads, look pretty similar to each other and Romani," she pointed to herself on her name. "Have you seen or heard of them?"

"No, can't say I have," the squinty guy shook his head. "You best go ask the Gorons about that. They're more up-to-date with current events," He pointed over his shoulder.

"Romani thanks you," she gave a bow.

"You're welcome," the squinty guy then shut the door.

"Okay, follow Romani!" the rancher girl set off through the snow leading the way to and down another path, eventually coming to a frozen lake with three islands in the middle. Each island was linked by a wooden plank that served as a bridge. There was a ramp nearby that lead up to a cave, as well. "Maybe we should check that cave?" she pointed up there.

"This slope is too steep," Talon deduced, feeling groggy from all the walking in the cold. On winter days, especially, he liked to nap by a fire.

"Okay, let's go across the lake, then," Romani led them over the first bridge. On the small island, a White Wolfos sprang from the snow and jumped at her. Ingo sprang into action, catching it with his prongs and impaling it, before slinging it over the side.

"You're welcome," Ingo wiggled his mustache as he chuckled with an inflated ego. Continuing on, they crossed the second and third bridges before another White Wolfos jumped out at them on the third island. Talon spun as it jumped from behind him, delivering a powerful uppercut to its jaw and sending it spinning away to land with a crunch on the first island.

"Good one, Stout!" Romani said with awe.

"Huh?" Talon blinked. "What just happened?"

"You idiot!" Ingo raged, shaking the rancher by the shoulders. "You just punched out a monster and you're not even awake enough for that?"

"Shucks, I was just kidding," Talon replied, taking a step away to free himself. "You need to get a sense of humor, partner,"

"I'll give you a…" Ingo grumbled, taking the lead and leading them around the ice stalagmite that was, for some reason, in the middle of the island. Crossing the last plank bridge, they went through a narrow tunnel and emerged in a rocky area with a few intertwining paths.

"Ho! You are human?" two goron guards stood by the entrance. The three jumped and readied their weapons as they heard this, having not seen them yet. "Put away your weapons, we are not enemies," the speaking Goron held out his hand.

"So you're a Goron?" Romani asked.

"Yes, human, I am," the Goron nodded. "But why are humans out in this weather? Even we Gorons are having trouble staying warm,"

"We're looking for two red-heads," Ingo interjected impatiently. "Have you seen or heard of them?"

"More humans? No, I'm afraid not," the Goron shook his head. "However, the Elder may know," He walked away from his post. "I'll be back in a minute," he said to the other Goron before leading them down a slope to their right and to a door that had the Goron emblem on it (it resembled some sort of paw print). "Here is where the Elder lives," he curled into a ball and slammed the ground, nearly knocking Team Lon down, but the door opened in response to the impact, sliding upward. "In you go," the Goron said after he uncurled. The trio quickly walked in and the door closed behind them. The room within was quite grand, for a Goron house. There was a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling and two ramps that lead up to a high balcony.

"It's all made out of stone. This is plum incredible," Talon commented, looking around. The bell tolled 12:00.

"You are here to see the Elder?" a Goron asked from nearby.

"Yes," Romani replied.

"Okay, follow me," he curled up and rolled up one of the ramps. They followed more slowly, as they were on foot. Once at the top, the Goron led them across the balcony, along a rug, and through some doors, which led to a room where a hunchbacked old Goron sat in a stone rocking chair. "Some guests for you, honorable Elder," the Goron then left.

"Ah, humans. What can I do for you?" the Elder asked. They relayed the usual question. "We have seen no humans here since the blizzard started late last night, and few before that, save that blacksmith and his assistant that live west of here," He lowered his head. "I'm sorry. I know how it feels to be separated from loved ones," he looked over at his sleeping child. Romani slumped.

"Oh, well, Romani guesses that they aren't here," the rancher girl admitted.

"So we're heading back, now?" Ingo asked impatiently.

"Yes, come on…" she led the way out. The door opened easily from the inside with just a nudge, and they, once again, met the frigid air of the blizzard. So they trudged back up the slope and to the village entrance.

"No luck?" the Goron from before asked. Romani shook her head. "Well, don't give up, little human, I'm sure they're somewhere,"

Out of the village and across the bridges that went again. Another White Wolfos decided to bother them on the last island, but Talon punched it off of the edge with a harsh blow to the head. They then went back to the clearing where the smithy was as the clock rang 12:30. Pushing through the blizzard, they made their way back to the foothills, melting any snowball that got in the way, and at 13:30, arrived back in the northern part of Termina Field.

"Well, that was a bust," Romani commented. "But Romani's sure that she'll pick the right spot tomorrow," She gave a confident smile. "Now we need to get back to the ranch. There's a milk delivery to be done,"

"After all this adventuring in the cold and snow, you want us to go on a delivery?" Ingo exclaimed angrily.

"You're a farm hand, stop complaining about your chores!" Romani scolded. Ingo grumbled and said nothing more as they made their way back to the ranch. No more Dodongos were there as they passed out of the northern region, and Takkuri was still limp on the ground, so getting back to the Milk Road only took until 14:30.

"Howdy, there!" one of the Gorman brothers greeted as they walked by the entrance to their racetrack. "Comin' back from somewhere?"

"That's none of your business!" Romani retorted at the known thief.

"Fair enough…" the guy replied, but then spotted Ingo. "Hey, stranger! You look familiar. Are we related?"

"Like I'd admit relations to a couple of guys like you. You've never worked an honest day in your lives," Ingo said proud, for once, of his hard work that he did everyday.

"I don't have time for lightweights like you," the brother replied. "See ya, later," he walked back into the racetrack. The trio began to walk again.

"Are you really related to the Gorman brothers?" Romani asked. Ingo looked annoyed at the question and closed his eyes in a dignified way.

"Technically, they're my cousins, but I loathe admitting that," the ranch hand replied. Around 15:00, they finally came to the gate of the ranch. It and said ranch were still as they'd left it, though the cows had milled around to different locations. Romani unlocked the gate and the two men pushed it open before they went in.

"Okay, so we'll eat a late lunch, tie up the loose ends on the chores, and then two of us will go on the delivery while the other one stays to watch the place.

"Fine, but I'm not leaving Talon here," Ingo replied. "He'll just fall asleep and a marching band will be able to come in here and take everything while blowing a trumpet in his ear,"

"Hey!" Talon protested. "I'm not that heavy a sleeper,"

So after a lunch of milk, bread, and roasted beef (which they ended up having to dig out of Romani's bag, by the way), they checked on the animals and a few other precautionary things, before bringing the wagon out and attaching Epona to it. Ingo and Talon lugged the milk canisters out to the cart and hefted them on. After securing them, it was decided that Talon would drive, to keep him awake and whatnot, and Romani would watch for bandits from the back. Since she had a bow, she could defend against them if necessary.

"The Gorman brothers will probably try to steal the milk, they always do," Romani said. "Stout, you'll need to get us to Clock Town as quickly as possible without upsetting the wagon or something,"

"Darlin', I've been drivin' wagons since I was a lad," Talon replied.

"Just being precautionary," Romani said, waving her hand. "Romani'll fill pursuers with arrows if she has to. Lanky, I want you to close the gates after we leave, in case they decide to come here instead,"

"Yeah, yeah, quit being melodramatic and get going before the milk bar goes out of business," Ingo replied in his cranky fashion. After double-checking the bindings securing the canisters, Talon cracked the reigns and they were off.

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**I guess they have their moments, but they're still not too entertaining, by my book. I suppose the next chapter will have a little bit of action since they'll be fighting off bandits (obviously). By the way, for those that didn't get the Bombachu Bowling Alley joke (for whatever reason) the girl that runs that place in OOT is always asleep until you rouse her to play the mini-game. Coinscidental? Remember to review so I can have feedback, and you can still vote on your favorite team on my profile page. **


	15. Team Lon Level 2

**Well, I think this chapter was a bit more interesting, but it has less action. Oh, well. Btw, I know little of old-fashioned ways of doing stuff and my parents take too long to get to the point, so I may or may not have gotten some of these methods correct. I still own nothing!****

* * *

******

Level 2

Epona trotted out the gate with the wagon in tow. Ingo, as he agreed, sort of, shut and barred the gates behind them.

"Give those bandits what for!" he shouted over the gate before trudging back to his duties.

"Will do!" Romani replied before sitting down and eyeing all six canisters of milk.

"Tarnation," Talon uttered as they passed the normally-fenced-off entrance to the Gorman Racetrack. Somehow, they had moved the gate and it now crossed the path. "We're cut off, and if we try to cut through their property…"

"Those jerks had this planned. They do it to Cremia all the time," Romani said with a frown. "That's why Grasshopper stays at the ranch, besides the fact that Anju's inn is too pricey for him,"

"Well, time to bite the arrow and get goin'," Talon cracked the reigns and steered the cart onto the racetrack. The cart passed down a short path and through a gap in the wall that surrounded the path. Talon peered ahead. "Okay, Romani, looks like we'll have to loop around, since there's a gate blockin' the direct route,"

"Just get us through quickly and Romani'll feather the bandits," the rancher staggered as he obeyed and Epona took off with a whinny. True, it was unwise to drive a loaded cart so fast, but the jiggling jars and rattling wheels seemed to be holding up fine and Talon knew to slow down on curves.

A harsh cry suddenly came from behind them as two figures in Garo masks came riding out on brown horses with pitchfork in hand. Romani gritted her teeth at them and held her bow high. "Romani accepts your challenge, Gorman Brothers!" One gave an angry shout and charged, pitchfork first, to try and cut the bindings on the milk. Romani notched an arrow and fired it into his shoulder. He yelled in anger and pain and pulled his horse around, retreating a little ways but still following.

As much as she wanted to do worse, Romani knew that she should just repel the guys. The other gave a cry and came at the cart in a long curve to the side as Talon had to slow for the first curve. Romani managed to catch him inches from losing a canister and nailed him in the leg. He shook his fist and shouted his outrage as he too retreated a bit, pulling the shaft out of his leg and throwing it angrily down. They were now in a bit of a straightaway. The first brother closed in again while the second feinted. Romani shifted her gaze between them and then fired. The first brother fell back with an arrow in his arm. Since he was already close, the second brother charged for the milk, but Romani fired a volley and he immediately resembled a pin cushion.

Growling and badly injured, the second brother gave the first one a signal and rode off. Now only one adversary was pursuing them. Talon slowed down as he rounded the eastern curve of the track. Giving the remaining brother a shot to attack again. This time, he feinted right, charging at full tilt, but when Romani fired a shot, he turned left and his pitchfork…missed? He growled in anguish and almost dropped his implement when an arrow lodged in his hand. Falling back, he noticed, as well as Talon, the exit to the racetrack.

"We're almost there, Romani!" Talon called back at her. Angry, the Gorman brother removed the arrow and hurtled his pitchfork at the wagon, it barely missed and stuck in the ground.

"Don't you think this is over, wench!" the brother yelled after them. The cart rolled back out onto the Milk Road with Romani cheering in triumph.

"We did it!" Romani shouted, hugging Talon. "We didn't lose a single bottle this time!"

"Yeah, it's plum great, but could you let me drive, darlin'?" Talon replied with a smile. "We still got to get to Clock Town,"

"Oh, right…" Romani sat down in the back. Talon started to slip off into fantasies about his late wife…at least until he almost hit one of the wooden structures by the Milk Road entrance. The wagon wobbled a little until he corrected the course.

"What's happening?" Romani asked, looking back at him.

"N-Nothin'," Talon said, embarrassed. Luckily, Takkuri was not coming back and no more challenges for possession of the milk arose.

The clock tolled 16:00 as they rode up to the south gate.

"Halt!" the guard said. "What is your business?"

"We're delivering milk to the Milk Bar, Latte," Romani piped up, looking over the front seat at the guard.

"That's all well and good, but we still need you to show your proof of delivery or a pass to enter town," the guard replied.

"Uh, well…" Romani searched her pockets and then looked downcast.

"Romani, Talon?" Kafei came walking up. "On a milk delivery, I assume?"

"Yep," Talon replied. "But we're havin' a spot of trouble gettin' into town,"

"Well, you will if you don't have the proper papers," Kafei answered flatly. "Captain Viscen has ordered restricted traffic in the face of monster increases,"

"Well, we need to get in, so what do we have to do?" Romani asked, getting a little impatient. Kafei turned to the guards.

"Let them in, I can vouch for them," he said. "They are the ranchers from Romani Ranch," He pointed to Romani. "In fact, she is the acting owner, at this moment,"

"All right, Mr. Kafei," the guard relented. "Come in, Miss and Sir,"

"Thank'ee kindly," Talon nodded, ushering Epona on and towards East Clock Town.

"Thanks, Ninja!" Romani called to Kafei as they passed him.

"Don't mention it!" he called after her with a small smile.

As they rode up to the Milk Bar, the bar tender, who, by coincidence, happened to be Talon's cousin, came out, as he'd seen them coming. The townspeople moved aside and gave the cart the right-away as it pulled up and stopped in front of the bar.

"Hey, Romani!" Link had just come out of the inn. "You guys making a delivery?"

"Yep," Romani replied as Talon and the bartender opened the back of the wagon and started to unload, carrying each canister inside. "Romani feathered those Gorman Brothers and drove them home cryin'!" Link smiled and nodded.

"That's good. I didn't want the milk to get stolen just because I wasn't there,"

"Romani's a competent archer, your concerns were unnecessary, Grasshopper," the rancher girl replied.

"Okay, okay, fair enough," Link held out his hands in mock-surrender, slightly embarrassed by his nickname. "Sorry, Romani, but I've got to meet Lucius and Kafei for dinner in a little while,"

"Romani, time to head back!" Talon called as he got back in the driver's seat.

"Okay!" she responded. "See ya, Grasshopper!" she giggled and jumped back onto the cart, taking a seat next to Talon this time, as there was nothing to guard. Link ran off to the nearby café as the turned the cart around and rode back out of East Clock Town, heading back to the south gate.

"Hey!" the guard stopped them as they passed through. 16:30 tolled in the background.

"What is it, Mr. Guard?" Romani asked politely.

"Mr. Kafei told us to give you this when you came back," the guard held out a pass with Mayor Dotour's signature. "This pass will get you into town next time you bring milk,"

"Thank'ee," Talon nodded before cracking the reigns and riding out of town. "We better put the spurs on, it's gettin' mighty late," He looked at the sky.

Epona bore them swiftly back to the ranch. Thankfully, the Gorman Brothers seemed to have taken their fence back to its proper place. The bell tolled 17:00 as they stopped at the gate.

"Lanky!" Romani called, her voice echoing over the ranch.

"I'm coming!" he called from the barn. He took about ten minutes getting over, even at a fast pace, but he finally opened the gates for them. "Get a good profit this time?"

"Plum good!" Talon replied as Ingo barred the gates behind them. "We got all six canisters over there," He held out three silver rupees. Ingo took a look at them.

"Fair enough, that'll be enough for ranch maintenance, and leave us with 200 to split for salaries," the ranch hand went off to the barn to open the door for the cart.

Romani headed into the house while Talon and Ingo tended to the evening chores. She heard the clock toll 17:30 as she opened the pantry to see what they had. Apparently, Ingo has put back part of the food that had been in her satchel. Namely, the very perishable stuff, like meat. It also appeared that a fresh carton of eggs was in the store cupboard, and a couple more bottles of milk. She grabbed one and took a swig, savoring the unique taste as her thirst was quenched.

"Romani'll never tire of this milk," she moaned to herself, corking the bottle and putting it back. Moving on to dinner, she pulled out some of the roasted meat and decided on a soup. She grabbed the cast-iron pot and put it on the wood stove, throwing a couple of chops of wood in and lighting it, before going out to the well that was right behind the farmhouse. She lowered the bucket in. Sometimes, she mused, she envied Anju having city conveniences, but to each their own and it would be too complicated to set up a pipe system at the ranch. Pulling up the full bucket, she detached it and lugged it in the house as she heard Ingo yelling at Talon in the barn.

"…supposed to be moving the cans and placing them! I almost spilled one because of your incompetent…" Romani went back into the house and filled the pot a good two-thirds full. Placing the remainder of the bucket out of the way, she opened the vegetable crate in the corner and pulled out a few carrots, potatoes, and onions. She minced them into the water with the practice of an expert, and then shredded half of the hunk of roasted beef in. She felt sorry for the cow they'd had to kill to make the meat, but it was a matter of you-or-me and she'd rather eat a cow than have no meat and risk starving if they ran out of other stuff. Besides, meat was tasty the way Talon cooked it. She hoped that he'd teach her how he did one of these days.

"What's for dinner?" Ingo said in his rough tones as he and Talon came in. Romani heard a wolf howl in the distance to symbolize nightfall as the bells rung 18 times.

**Night of the First Day**

She really did take after her uncle Talon after all, what with zoning out for half an hour.

"Soup," Romani replied. "You two go wash up while it finishes,"

After a short fight over who got to wash up first (Ingo lost), the two managed to, more or less, bathe in an orderly fashion and return in time for Romani to be placing the steaming bowls on the table.

"Finally! I'm plum starved!" Talon sat down and started to eat the soup with due caution, not relishing burning his mouth. Ingo, too, took his seat, and spooned some of the liquid into his mouth. Romani sighed as she stirred her own soup around, waiting for it to cool. "Somethin' wrong, Romani?" Talon paused in his eating.

"Not really…" the rancher girl sighed, trying a spoonful of soup. It was superb, but she still didn't really enjoy the flavor because of what was on her mind.

"If you're worried about your sister, don't ruin your dinner about it," Ingo grumbled. "We'll go search again tomorrow," Romani looked up.

"You're right, Lanky. We'll find sis and Mally yet!" Romani said confidently, now eating her soup with joy.

"Nice one, Ingo," Talon muttered behind a hand.

"Shut up," Ingo replied, though his moustache twitched with satisfaction at cheering her up.

"Well, Romani's done," Romani put her spoon in her empty bowl. "Stout, do Romani a favor and wash up the bowls while Romani washes up herself,"

"Sure thing, darlin'," Talon nodded as the girl headed upstairs to the washroom that was adjacent to the bedroom. "You replaced the water, right?" he asked Ingo.

"Of course, you lazy bum, I'm not you," Ingo retorted. "Now I'm heading to bed, good night," he trudged up the stairs and shut the guest bedroom door behind him. Going over to his bed, he flopped down and passed out instantly. Talon got out a tea kettle and boiled what remained of the water that Romani had drawn earlier. After it was hot, he got out a washtub and poured the steaming water in, after placing said tub on the small counter. With a sigh, he grabbed a dishrag and a bowl…

Romani sighed with happiness as she came out of the bathroom in a fresh dress.

_It's always so nice to take a nice, hot bath after a long day._ Apparently, they had a small heater that held enough coals to heat a tea kettle, in the bathroom. She looked sadly at her sister's empty bed, but then she averted her eyes and fell into her own bed with a content moan.

"Good night, Romani," she muttered, burrowing into the covers and dreaming of the day's adventures.

**Dawn of the Second Day**

Romani walked with a spring in her step, down the stairs, the next morning. Ingo was standing at the stove, scrambling eggs, his mustache twitched periodically in anticipation or something of the sort.

"What's up, Lanky?" Romani asked as she approached the ranch hand.

"There you are," he looked at her. "Go out and make sure that lazy excuse for a rancher didn't fall asleep in the barn,"

"Okay," Romani walked out of the house, inhaling the morning air. As she headed over to the barn, she wondered how they could be so mean to each other all the time. A loud snoring as she entered the barn, indicated, sure enough, that Talon was slacking off again. This time, he'd fallen asleep, slumped, against the pile of chicken feed corn. It was lucky that Grog was in charge of fetching it, as they wouldn't be able to find the time, sometimes, especially now that they were using almost half of their day for adventuring.

"Hey, Stout, get up!" Romani nudged him and he fell onto his side, seemingly unaffected. "Stout!" She whacked him with her bow.

"What in tarnation?" he jumped up.

"Aren't you supposed to be taking Grog the feed for the chickens?" Romani asked, giggling at his reaction.

"Oh, right," he hefted a bag onto his shoulder. "I already milked the cows and arranged the cans, be a darlin' and put the cows out to pasture," He ran out of the barn. Romani opened the barn doors wide and went to release the cows.

The clock tolled 07:00 as they all sat down to their breakfast of scrambled eggs and what was left of the hunk of meat that had been in the soup the night before.

"So, Romani, where're we headed today?" Talon asked before taking a chug of milk.

"Hmm…" Romani tapped her chin. "Why don't we try Ikana Canyon? Maybe the ghosts got sis and Mally," Ingo snorted.

"Don't see why ghosts would bother…" he muttered. Romani stood and put her hands on her hips.

"Well, we're headed there, come 09:00, so you better be ready!"

"Fine, whatever…" Ingo's mustache twitched in annoyance.

So, just as they had the previous day, the three gathered in front of the farmhouse at 09:00. Their chores caught up for the moment, they headed for the gate to the ranch, closing it behind them, and headed down the Milk Road on foot.

"…have to do ranch work and march all over creation…" Ingo's irritable mutterings ran on and on as they went. Romani went along, humming Epona's Song in a cheerful fashion. Talon yawned and wondered how long this would take.

The bell tolled 09:30 as they came, once again, out into Termina Field.

"Okay! Ikana Canyon is to the east of Clock Town!" Romani announced for no apparent reason.

"We know that!" Ingo replied gruffly. "Let's just go!" So they pressed on, heading across the path of pillars that led from Clock Town's south gate to the Southern Swamp. A bouncing blob of jelly accosted them, but Talon decked it into goo. Another showed up, though, and Romani shot it with a fire arrow, reducing it to burnt gunk. The clock tolled 10:00 as they continued on.

"Look, there's the observatory!" Romani pointed to the rounded building on the ridge above. "Romani wishes she had a telescope like that…" The telescope in question twisted and looped a little before looking outwards. It could be assumed that one could turn it from inside the building.

"It'd make it easier to see stars, that's for plum sure," Talon commented.

"Okay, enough with the telescope, I'd like to make this trip quick as possible," Ingo complained, tapping his foot and wiggling his mustache.

So the party was spurned on until they came to the end of the grass and the beginning of a rocky area. This area, too, had two lines of pillars that led from the near gate to town, but it also had large rats running around with bombs attached to their tails.

"Those don't look friendly…" Talon mentioned, eyeing them warily. "They look like they'll plum explode if we bother them," Romani notched an arrow.

"Yeah, Romani thinks that Magie called them Bombachus," Romani mused. "I'd better shoot them," Each one exploded violently, rocking the area a little and leaving pockmarks. The other two jumped at each detonation. Finally, the way was clear. "Let's head on," So they walked on into the barren area, encountering a fence before too long.

"How in tarnation will we get past this?" Talon asked, looking at the gate and at the other two.

"Well, I can do it, but you two may have a problem," Ingo then used his pitchfork to pole vault over the fence.

"Well, Romani?" Talon looked at her, but she was already trying to scramble over the fence. Somehow, she managed it without mangling her dress on the spikes.

"Your turn, Stout!" she said cheerfully.

"Romani, I ain't 30 no more!" Talon grumbled, hoisting himself up and over with brute force. He fell on his butt on the other side, panting slightly.

"Come on, you're a rancher!" Ingo grumbled, turning and going to scout ahead. "Girl, there are more of those exploding rats up here,"

"Romani's on it," Romani went forward and sniped them all quite easily. By the time she was done, Talon was back on his feet again.

Together, they decided to turn left and go further down the path. The area they entered was full of graves and, oddly enough, grass.

"It's a graveyard," Romani commented. "But whose?"

"The people of Ikana, young lady," a pale old man in brown, bearing a shovel and a hunched back, came ambling over. "This is their bone yard,"

"Who in tarnation are you?" Ingo asked rudely.

"Oh, right, how rude of me. I'm Dampé, the caretaker of this graveyard," the pale guy replied.

"Okay, Digger, did you see anybody with red hair around here?" Romani inquired.

"Besides you?" Dampen raised an eyebrow. "New! Naw, no one is around here but the undead, and even they seem to be gone, as of last night," Romani hung her head. "But don't be discouraged. If I recall, there's another couple o' people here," He gestured back the way they came. "If you find a way up that cliff back there and get up to where Ikana Castle is, I think there's still some researcher and his kid living 'round 'ere," The bell tolled 11:00. "But why don't ya come in fer tea, it's 'round lunch,"

"Why not?" Talon agreed. "I don't s'pose you get many visitors 'round these parts,"

"That I don't, that I don't…" Dampé agreed, leading them back to his fair-sized hut on the edge of the graveyard. "Might be a tight fit, but I think that we can all fit," he went in and started a fire under a tea kettle. "Have a seat," he gestured to the rather rickety-looking chairs around a rather unstable-looking table. They were polite, though, and took the invitation.

"So how do you get supplies out here, if you don't mind my askin'?" Talon said in an attempt to make conversation.

"I go into town every month or so," Dampé answered. "Always able to dig up money 'round here so it's not hard to buy supplies,"

"Don't the ghosts and stuff get mad if you take their money?" Romani said, a bit surprised. Dampé let out a hoarse laugh.

"Naw, not really. T'isn't theirs, really," he poured the hot water in four mugs that held tea leaves. "Most of it belongs to fallen enemies or their king, and he's not really been much of a problem since the Moon Incident," He handed out the steaming cups of liquid. "Here's the tea," he sat down slowly, showing signs of creaky joints, on another rickety chair and took a sip of his tea. They all sat quietly for a while, looking around the dusty, musty old house and sipping at their drinks.

Finally, Dampé spoke again. "Tell you what, I'll lend you some rope," He got slowly up and trudged over to a cabinet. Opening the tarnished wooden door, he pulled out a coil of rope. He then shut the door and came back over to the table, placing the coil down in front of Romani. "If you tie it to an arrow and shoot it at the tree on top of the cliff, you should be able to climb. Just remember to take the rope with you after the ascent…may come in handy…" he gave a creepy smile, but it was warm none-the-less.

* * *

**This is the first time that Dampé has appeared in one of my stories. I think I got his character right, but you never can tell, as he's a minor character. Anyway, if you're wondering why Kafei has so much authority, for whatever reason, he's the mayor's son. I guess that means that he is, effectively, prince of Clock Town. Besides, he can just get Dotour to back him when he speaks, anyway. Anyway, don't be afraid to review. I made an error in the last chapter and found it, thank goodness, but I never know about discrepencies or plot holes unless someone says so. Oh, well, no one's forcing you...oh, and don't forget to vote for your favorite team, if you haven't already. **


	16. Team Lon Level 3

**Whew! It's been a while, but I finally managed to get this chapter done and up. I still own nothing!**

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Level 3

The three thanked Dampé for the tea and headed on their way, the clock tolled 11:30 as they set out.

"Quite the character," Ingo grumbled.

"Yes, but pretty nice for a hermit that has to live in a graveyard," Romani added.

"And now we know where to go," Talon interjected. "We'll have ta bring 'im some milk sometime," Ingo muttered something unintelligible in reply, his mustache twitching.

Around 11:45, they finally got back to the grassless area's forbidding cliff that they had ignored earlier when they had opted for the easier route. Romani shielded her eyes with her hand and peered up said cliff.

"It looks like there's a tree up there," she observed. "Romani will try that rope trick," She pulled out the rope and tied a bit of a crude knot (crude, at least, for this kind of application), before firing at the tree. The arrow lodged firmly, and even a tug from Talon didn't dislodge it.

"All right, I'll go first," Ingo grabbed the rope and climbed it, 'walking' with his feet on the wall for extra leverage. A minute later, he reached the top. "Come on up, time's a'wastin'!"

"Hold your horses!" Romani grabbed the rope and began the ascent. Talon soon followed. Once at the top, Romani undid her knot and coiled the rope back up before stowing it away.

Moving on, they soon came to another grassy area. Walking forward a bit, they heard the clock toll 12:00.

"Look! It's a castle!" Talon pointed to the ruined but still somewhat grandiose building up on the cliff.

"That means that the researcher must be up there!" Romani concluded. "Come on, Stout and Lanky!" She hurried forward, but soon slowed as she heard running water and then stopped entirely as she saw the running river and the impassable cliff up close.

"Now what?" Ingo grumbled. "Are we supposed to climb this too?" Talon yawned and looked up, for no real reason, and spotted a ledge with a dead tree. His gaze shifted to another ledge across from it, which held another tree, and the tree on top of the cliff.

"If we wanna talk to the researcher, yes!" Romani retorted, hands on hips.

"Well, why don't we just go back, I don't see any blasted reason to-"

"Hey!" Talon interrupted. "Let's just use them trees," He pointed. Ingo and Romani looked at each other and then the former walked off a bit, grumbling, while the latter smiled at the suggestion.

"Good idea, Stout!" she pulled the rope back out and tied it to an arrow. Soon, they were on the ledge above.

"You sure that Talon's fat body won't make this collapse?" Ingo asked with a twitch of his mustache.

"Hey!" Talon objected. Romani tied another part of the rope to another arrow and fired it up at the high tree on the ridge. The two stopped bickering briefly to examine the rope system that was now in place. "I'm thinkin' we should loop it 'round this tree for better leverage," Ingo gave him an odd look.

"Did you just use your head?" the ranch hand asked.

"Hey!" Talon protested, and the argument was back on. Romani sighed at their immaturity and looped the rope around the tree herself, tying it well. After trying to get the others' attention a couple of times, she decided to try it herself.

Grabbing hold of the rope, she slowly hefted herself against gravity, making her way carefully up and over the river to the cliff top. After a few tense moments, she put her feet down on solid rock.

"Success!" she cheered.

"What in tarnation?" Talon had been the first to notice that she was gone. "Darn, girl! You plum scared me! What with goin' across this by your lonesome!" He hefted across as well, followed shortly by a still-miffed Ingo, who had to carry his pitchfork in his teeth; a rather tricky maneuver, actually.

"Well, Romani tried to get you to test it for her…" Romani replied. Talon scratched the back of his head guiltily while Ingo just twitched his mustache.

After a few moments, the trio turned and spotted a rather odd-looking music box house.

"What in tarnation is that thing?" Ingo exclaimed.

"It looks like a music box," Romani observed.

"I know that!" Ingo retorted. "I wanna know why it's here, of all places!" So they made for the weird house, trying to block out the annoying music that came from its hydro-powered horns.

"I hate this blasted music!" Ingo clutched his head and waved it around in annoyance.

"It is rather…" Talon trailed off. They soon stopped as they saw a little girl outside, sitting next to the stream and staring at it. Dong! It was 12:30.

"Hey!" Romani hailed the girl. She jumped up, gave them a frightened look, which quickly morphed into a mean look as she saw who they were, and she gave them a 'buzz off' gesture before running back into the house.

"What's her blasted problem?" Ingo said, offended. Romani marched forward to the door and rapped on it.

"Hey! Anybody in there?" she called over the loud, obnoxious music.

"No! Go away!" a girl's voice came out through the door. The door opened anyway to reveal an odd-looking guy, obviously the researcher.

"Hello, may I help you?" he asked. "You'll have to forgive Pamela, she's a bit edgy after Gibdos menaced our house for a while, a while back," Ingo, apparently, didn't accept the apology, but said nothing and crossed his arms as well as he could with a pitchfork in hand.

"No, Romani startled her, so she owes an apology as well," the ranch girl admitted.

"Not to be rude, but have ya seen any red-heads 'round these parts?" Talon asked.

"Hmm…" the researcher put a hand to his chin. "Well, Pamela did say she saw three strangers, two men and a woman, yesterday, but I don't think they match the description,"

"No, they don't!" Pamela agreed from under the table. "Now get!"

"Pamela!" the man said scoldingly before turning back to Team Lon. "Sorry I couldn't help. Good luck, though,"

"Yeah, thanks…" Romani replied sadly as the door closed in front of her.

"Romani…" Talon began.

"No, it's okay. Let's get back to the ranch," she shook her head.

So back, it was, down the cliff. They managed to go down the rope and then use it to climb back to the grassy area.

"There's no way ta take it with us," Talon observed. "Let's just go,"

The clock tolled 13:00 as they reached the previous cliff.

"How now, lazy cow?" Ingo asked Talon scathingly.

"Jump?" Talon suggested, ignoring the insult.

"What?" Ingo ranted. "You're nuts!" Romani had already done the stunt. "She's nuts!" Ingo amended. Talon jumped off too. "You're nuts!" Ingo amended again.

"Hurry up, Lanky!" Romani called.

"But…I…oh, blast!" He jumped too, somehow managing not to sprain anything or impale anything. Proceeding, they came, again, to the gate, and, like before, managed to scale it without a cataclysm. Well, Romani did sustain a couple of minor tears to her dress, but nothing a little stitching wouldn't fix.

Finally, they were back in Termina Field, and the clock was tolling 13:30. Luckily, the Bombachus had stayed gone, so they only had to walk back the way they came. A couple of chuchus attacked them, but were quickly reduced to puddles of slime. Continuing on to the Milk Road entrance, they passed the signs as the clock tolled 14:30 and proceeded up the road. This time, neither of the Gorman Brothers showed their thieving faces. It was just as well, because Ingo was in the mood to throw a pitchfork through the next thing or person that annoyed him.

The bell tolled 15:00 when they arrived at the gate. Ingo whipped out the key and opened it, allowing the other two inside.

"Romani will make lunch for us…" Romani sighed, moving off for the farm house. Talon held out a hand after her, about to say something, but Ingo slapped him across the head and shook his own. With a shrug, the two headed for the barn.

By the time she reached the house at 15:30, the other two were already half-done with the current chores. True, she could have walked faster, but sad people usually don't. Sighing, she opened the cabinet and pulled out a hunk of roasted beef, a jar of milk, and a loaf of bread. She made a mental note to swing by Clock Town for more in the future, as this was their last loaf. Pulling out a knife, she shredded some of the meat, sliced some bread, and made roast beef sandwiches. Placing them on three plates, she maneuvered them over to the table. She headed back over to the counter and poured four cups of milk and then put those with each plate. The rest of the food would be on stand-by in case more was needed or wanted.

"It's about time!" Talon said eagerly as he came in. "I'm plum starved!"

"You say that every day!" Ingo pushed him in his haste to get to the table. Romani sighed, yet again, and took her own seat, munching nonchalantly on a sandwich.

"Now, now, Romani, we still ain't searched everywhere!" Talon attempted to console her through a full mouth. Ingo gave him a disapproving glare and swallowed before adding his comment.

"Termina is a big place, who knows where they are?" Ingo thought for a moment. _Actually, who knows if they're _in_ Termina? Malon's from Hyrule…this whole matter is lookin' mighty bad._ "We just need to keep lookin', that's all," Romani perked up.

"Yeah…Romani guesses you're right!" she took a big bite of sandwich and continued, hindered by the food. "We won't give up until there's no stone unturned!" Talon and Ingo were sprayed with bits of shredded meat and bread.

"That's all well and good, darlin', but keep your food to yourself," the fat rancher chuckled. Romani, embarrassed that she'd forgotten her manners, quickly swallowed with a gulp of milk and looked embarrassedly at her plate.

**Dawn of the Third Day**

Romani sat up in her bed and yawned, the next morning. The rest of the previous day had flown by and left her where she was now. After running a brush through her hair, she proceeded downstairs, where Talon was poaching some eggs.

"Good mornin', Romani," he called cheerfully from the stove.

"The same to you, Stout," she replied. "Call me when breakfast is ready," With that, she proceeded out to do the usual chores, which needn't be repeated again. Around 06:30, they returned to the house and quickly ate their breakfast. The trio knew that this day would be eventful as the last two, if not more so.

"So, where to today?" Ingo asked in his usual manner.

"Mmm…Great Bay sounds good," Romani said with no forethought.

"Ah, it's been a while since my last rodeo at the beach," Talon commented.

"This won't be a relaxation trip," Ingo snapped. "We're gonna be askin' 'round about missin' people, not snoozin' in the sun!" But Talon was already in another fantasy about his dear wife and their visits to Lake Hylia. Ingo noticed the familiar absence of awareness in the rancher's eyes and gave a snort, wiggling his mustache, before going back to eating.

Soon enough, it was their usual departure time of 09:00. Unfortunately, there was a catch this time.

"Yeah, we need ta get some more bread 'n vegetables," Talon reported. "If we horse up the wagon right quick, shouldn't take too long,"

"Well, Romani guesses that we can do that first," Romani reluctantly assented. It didn't take long to roll out the wagon and harness Epona up, and they were soon off as the clock tolled 09:30.

Luckily, the Gorman Brothers didn't make an appearance this time. Perhaps they knew (or guessed) that the cart was empty. Maybe they were still bitter and recovering. Whatever the reason, the three drove the wagon down the Milk Road unopposed. Across Termina Field, again, did they travel, and up to the South Gate.

"Halt!" the guard shouted, jumping in front of the wagon. "Show your papers!" Romani pulled out the pass that Kafei had had given to them the other day.

"Here, Mr. Guard," she said, holding it out. He examined it briefly and gave a nod.

"Okay, come in," he stepped aside and the other guard relaxed.

"They look tense," Talon observed, not taking his eyes off of his driving for more than a second. "Wonder why?"

"Who knows or cares," Ingo replied. "It's not our problem,"

The cart continued into East Clock Town and stopped in front of the building across from the inn.

"Here we are!" Romani said happily. "The Bakery & Grocer!"

"Who in their right mind puts two such businesses together?" Ingo muttered, still not comprehending after multiple visits. As they stepped in, they immediately smiled at the aroma of freshly-baked bread.

"G-day!" the cashier called from the counter. "Can I help ya, t'day?"

"Oh, yes, we need three loaves of white," Romani answered.

"I'll get those for ya," the cashier nodded, calling to the back. "Three white to travel!" Ingo, meanwhile, had wandered over to the other end of the store for speed efficiency's sake. This end smelled of dirt and various veggies which, after smelling the bread, made his nose wrinkle a little.

"Rancher, right?" the grubby-looking propitiator asked.

"Yeah, monthly vegetables," Ingo responded. The guy shoved a crate, identical to the one at home, at the ranch hand.

"Here, 110 rupees," Ingo grumbled and fished out the money. Luckily, this was in the budget.

"Hey, Talon! Get your lazy butt over here and help me with this crate!" Ingo called. Talon hustled over.

"Don't be rude," Talon replied, helping him lift the crate and shuffle out to the wagon with it. Fortunately, the door pushed from the inside, in anticipation of such an event as this.

"Here ya are, miss!" the cashier handed over a basket with a cloth tucked over the top. "That'll be 90 rupees," She pulled out four red rupees and one yellow rupee, put them on the counter, and made for the door with the basket. "Thank ya for your bus'ness and come again soon!"

"Thanks!" Romani headed out the door, where Ingo and Talon were waiting on the wagon, the former, surprisingly, more winded than the, supposedly-lazy, latter. As soon as the basket was in the back and secured, they were off again. The trip back took only a measly half an hour. It was now 10:30. Ingo and Talon hefted the crate inside and Romani put the basket in the cabinet. It was then that the rancher girl got another crazy idea.

"Why don't we take the wagon over to the beach?" she said suddenly. "It'd be a lot faster!"

"Romani, you plum crazy? Wagons don't run in sand, gets 'em bogged down," Talon warned.

"Well, it would get us over to the sandy area faster…" Ingo disagreed.

"Fine, but you're diggin' it out on yer own if it gets stuck," Talon shrugged.

Back on the wagon, it was only 10 minutes until they stopped next to the fountains that marked the stone path and stairs that led from Clock Town to the beach.

"Everybody off!" Romani declared cheerfully.

"How can she be so happy?" Ingo mumbled as they, indeed, got off of the wagon.

"Will the wagon be safe?" Talon worried.

"Sure it will!" Romani reassured him. "Besides, the Town Guard's watching this gate. I'm sure they'll keep an eye on it,"

"Yeah, watch it get destroyed from their safe walls…" Ingo grumbled quietly.

So they continued into the sandy, western area of Termina Field, complete with adorning starfish and shells and, for some odd reason, three large, semi-circle walls that faced east.

"Wonder what those are for?" Talon wondered aloud. Suddenly, a group of leevers shot from the sand and assaulted them.

"Tarnation!" Ingo slashed two across the face with a swipe of his implement as Romani shot three with an arrow each. Talon clocked the rest in the body with his powerful fists, making them crumple. Unfortunately, leevers just keep coming, as they soon found out, and, soon enough, they were running for the Great Bay.

"Romani thinks we're almost there!" she said as they passed through a gap in the rock ring that surrounded Termina Field. There was another fence, but they made it over without too much difficulty. The leevers, oddly enough, left them alone at this point and went back to wherever it was they came from.

"Glad that's over," Talon panted as the bell tolled 11:00.

"Okay, now let's go ask some Zoras about Romani's sister!" Romani said, heading off past yet more mysterious walls that were in the path. Ingo twitched his mustache and looked at Talon, who responded with a grin and a shrug, and they followed her. Not far into the beach, the leevers returned, much to Ingo's annoyance.

"How many of these blasted things are there?" he barked, killing them with a vengeance.

"Magie said that they keep spawning until the curse is broken or you leave," Romani explained as they beat off yet more leevers.

"Let's go to the other side of the shore!" Talon suggested, punching away several enemies. "If I guess a'right, they won't follow us," Without further ado, they all sprinted to the other side of the beach, nearly injuring an ankle or two trying to run in the shifting sand.

Finally, they passed the archway that marked Zora Cape, a.k.a. the other end of the beach. Sure enough, the leevers backed off and burrowed away again.

"Hey, you three!" a Zora called. "Break all three of these in one move, and win 90 rupees!" he gestured to the pots.

"I remember this!" Romani said happily. "The trick is to use boomerang fins, or a bomb arrow!" She fired one and the pots exploded neatly. The Zora sighed, and forked over the money, making a mental note to ban bomb arrows from his game. The trio moved on looking out at the ring of coral in the distance. "That's Zora Hall," she explained. "All the Zoras live there and they have a cool band," Her previous adventures with Link had taught her well. "Oh, yeah. Hey, Mr. Zora!" she called back to the mini-game Zora. "Have you seen any girls with red hair?"

"Nope, can't say I have," he replied. "But there was another archer earlier with black hair,"

"Okay," Romani looked a bit sad, but shook it off and lead them over to the grassy area on this side of the shore. They walked alongside an inlet until they reached a waterfall and its impact pool.

"Looks like a dead end," Ingo commented.

"Maybe that building with the hook on it, the one we saw earlier? Maybe they know something," Talon suggested.

So around 12:00, they finally made it back over to said building. It was a bit offshore, but they managed to swim to it with little problem. Of course, I say that without taking into account how Ingo had to swim with a pitchfork in his teeth. After they flopped onto the landing, they climbed the ladder and entered the building. It was cool and wet inside, and there was an aquarium by the door, as well as a much larger one opposite them. Their wet clothing wasn't being nice to them and they shuddered as they looked around for an inhabitant.

"Hmm?" a creepy old guy in a scientist's robe turned from some odd-looking soup he was making on a Bunsen burner. Apparently, anything else would heat the place up to much. "Ah, hello. Are you here to ask about Zoras? I'm an expert on Zoras," He stirred his soup. "Or did you, perhaps, want to eat lunch with me? I have fish soup,"

"Act-t-tually, we're look-king f-for two r-red-head g-g-irls-s-s," Talon shivered.

"Oh, haven't seen any," the guy shrugged. "But you seem cold, have some soup," He ladled some into bowls and placed them on the small counter he had. The three were iffy about accepting some odd-looking fish soup from some creepy old guy that lived in a remote (for humans, at least) observatory, but cold and hunger won the fight and they accepted gratefully.

"This stuff isn't that bad," Romani said, surprised, as she was warmed quickly by the broth.

"My shivers is gone," Talon added. Ingo grunted agreement and kept eating.

"Of course, this soup is designed for swimmers to eat," the old scientist nodded. "Takes the edge off of the water's chill,"

They were finished quickly enough and chatted until 13:00. The old man brought up an interesting theory about checking in the Gerudo Fortress for the lost girls, as the pirates did odd things like capture people and random shiny or valuable-looking objects, from time-to-time.

"Oh, no, we need to get movin'!" Romani exclaimed as she heard the bell. "The day is escaping,"

"Well, if you need to get to the pirate's fortress, go down to that owl statue on the landing below, and sing the song engraved there," the old scientist suggested.

"Okay, thanks," Romani hurried out.

"Thank'ee for the soup," Talon added.

"Come back for lunch, anytime. Ho, ho, ho!" he gave a creepy laugh.

* * *

**Finally, an action scene is approaching, sort of. Anyway, don't be discouraged by this team's dullness, they're the ones that aren't really involved much with the main story. Review so that I know about how I did and any errors I might have missed. And if you haven't voted on your favorite team, go ahead on my profile page.**


	17. Team Lon Level 4

**Well, it's finally done. Things are speeding up as we near the end of the story. One, two more chapters, tops, and then it's on to Team Link. I own nothing!**

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Level 4

"Is this it?" Romani asked no one in particular as the three gazed at the owl statue and its spread wings.

"Yep, looks like it," Talon replied. "And there's the notes,"

"Down, Left, Up," Ingo snorted. "I don't get it,"

"They're ocarina notes," Romani replied, knowing because Link always knew what to play from scores like this. "Let's see if I can imitate it," So she began to sing…and sing…and sing…it took about 30 minutes for her to finally get it right.

"Finally!" Ingo snapped, but was interrupted by a loud hooting as a giant owl came into view.

"What in tarnation?" Talon exclaimed. "That thing's huge!"

"Who called me? Hoot! Hoot!" the owl asked flapping down and landing on the statue, causing the others to take a step or two back to give him room.

"Oh, Romani did. We need a ride to the Gerudo Fortress," Romani explained.

"Hoot! The Gerudo Fortress, eh?" the owl cocked his head sideways. "As much as I'd like to help, I'd rather not get pelted with spears,"

"But we're on a rescue mission!" Romani pouted for extra effect. Gaebola hooted a few more times, starting to get on Ingo's nerves, if his mustache was any indication.

"Okay, no need to pull out the cute routine," He ruffled his feathers. "But I'll only take you as close as possible without going into the complex so that they won't see us," He flapped into the air. "Grab onto one another," He grabbed Romani by the shoulders with his talons and flew over to Ingo. Trying not to look up her dress, he grabbed her legs, and the owl flew over to Talon, who grabbed Ingo's legs. "And we're off!" Gaebola took off at a good speed, although his passengers weren't very happy.

"My blasted legs are coming off!" Ingo yelled down at Talon. "Lose some weight, fatty!"

"How do you think Romani feels having to hold up both of you?" Romani snapped.

"I'm plum capable of holdin' myself up, so why am I too darn fat?" Talon argued. Gaebola rolled his eyes and flapped harder. He would rather not get into their argument, but they were unaware that he was having to hold all three of them by one pair of shoulders and was trying not to dig his talons in.

Come 14:00, Gaebola dropped them off on a roof in the southeast corner of the fortress.

"Now, if you need to escape, I'll make a special case today and come back if you sing the Song of Soaring again," he pointed a wing at them. "But only once!" With that, he took off.

"What a nice owl…" Talon muttered.

"Are you nuts?" Ingo retorted.

"Shh!" Romani pulled them both down as guards looked up at their position. "Do you want to get us caught?" No sooner had she said that, than an alarm bell began to chime. "Uh, oh!"

"Unauthorized persons have been detected in the waterways. Proceed to intercept and neutralize," a woman's voice, most likely the leader's, boomed from a primitive horn that served as a PA system for the fort. The guards on the bridge and a couple others ran off from their posts and into one of the doors.

"Guess someone else is sneakin' in today," Ingo muttered. Romani started to sneak across the roof as he finished speaking. The other two looked at each other and followed.

_This must be the central building…I bet we could find out about sis here._ Romani thought, signaling the other two as she dropped down and went through a door.

_Yep, she's nuts._ Ingo thought, following.

_Just like my wife._ was Talon's opinion.

The door, it turned out, led to what could loosely be classified as an air vent, if only because it was an otherwise pointless tunnel and there was a hole with a vent covering about halfway down. Romani stopped in front of it and went flat on the ground, trying to get a peek through.

"That's the leader," Romani presumed quietly, pointing to the regal-looking woman that was sitting on a stone throne, for lack of a better chair word. In her hands, she held a shining, blue stone that vaguely resembled a drop of water hitting a pond, or something to that effect. She looked admiringly at the stone, a greedy smile on her face, while her guards tried their best to ignore her. It was a little annoying when she got like this over treasure.

"This is definitely one of the sacred jewels," she said finally as she held it up to the light. "A treasure worthy of the Gerudo Pirates,"

"But, Aveil, such things are dangerous to have, remember the old stories?" one of her guards warned.

"Pah! Believe that rubbish if you will," Aveil replied. "This treasure is ours now," Unfortunately, Romani decided that the talk about treasure was somehow related to Cremia or Malon. Maybe they had found that jewel and been robbed and jailed by these pirates!

"Not so fast!" Romani kicked away the vent cover and jumped into the room. Her companions, appalled at her actions, followed anyway, for the sake of keeping her from getting beat up. "You just admitted that you have Cremia and Malon here!"

"I did no such thing!" Aveil retorted, a little confused, though she concealed it. She signaled her elite guards. "Seize them!" The royal guards advanced on the group with swords drawn.

"This ain't good," Talon said apprehensively, taking a defensive stance.

"That's quitter talk! Let's go!"

Romani jumped back and fired a volley of arrows, but they were dodged. Ingo caught one of the Gerudo before she recovered and hurled her into a wall while Talon threw a crate at the other. She sliced it asunder just in time to take a light arrow to the face and collapse.

"Hmm…perhaps you have some skill, after all," Aveil admitted, getting up and drawing her sabers. "But the fun is just getting started," She deflected several light arrows that Romani shot at her, and jumped over Ingo's stab, kicking him in the face and making him reel. Talon took a couple of swipes at her, only to sustain a series of cuts and get a round-house kick to the face that sent him spinning out. Ingo took a couple of vicious swipes, only to have them dodged too, as Talon jumped back up and tried to smash tackle her. She cart wheeled out of the way, kicking Romani backwards, as Talon smashed through the barrels where Team Shadows was hiding. The three villains jumped aside to avoid Talon's bulk as it hit the floor, yet again, as did Team Link, who, apparently, had just arrived and was stalled by Team Shadows.

Link, Lucius, and Kafei raced past Talon as he scrambled back to his feet and joined Team Lon's battle. Aveil stopped momentarily, as did Ingo and Romani, as they gave the newcomers a glance. Now outnumbered 6-to-1, one would think that Aveil would surrender or flee, but, in her haughty pride, she chose to keep fighting the odds.

"What are you doing here?" Link asked as Ingo threw his pitchfork at Aveil, but she gracefully jumped over it, performed several back-flips to dodge the salvo of light spells that Lucius fired at her, and kicked Ingo in the face, causing him to smash into a wall and lose consciousness.

"Can we discuss this later?" Kafei interjected. Link accepted this suggestion and rushed at Aveil, slicing and blocking fiercely as Romani ran over by Lucius and, together, they fired elemental spells and projectiles, respectively, in their attempt to snipe the Gerudo Leader. Nimble and deft, she managed to dodge every attack and still rain blows down on Link's shield. Kafei jumped in right about now, attacking as swiftly as she, forcing her to move even faster to fend off Link and the other thief. Talon then charged at her and decked her a good one through an opening in her guard, as she was in the middle of a combo, smashing her into a wall and sending the jewel flying right into Vaati's hand.

"We got it! Time to run!" Ganondorf declared as they ran out the door, ignoring their enemies' shouts of anger.

"Those are the bad guys!" Romani exclaimed. "We've gotta get 'em!"

"That's not a good idea right now," Kafei replied calmly. "This fortress will soon be active as an anthill," Lucius went over to check on Ingo.

"Besides, the guards will give them a run for their money," Link said, cocky, and flipped his nose. Ingo was surrounded by blue light as Lucius's healing spell worked and the farm hand soon jumped back up.

"Now," Lucius came over to the others as Ingo retrieved his implement. Bells and such were going off outside, but that wasn't their concern at the second. "Why on earth are you in the Gerudo Fortress, Romani?"

"Romani thought sis and Mally might be here…" the rancher girl replied sheepishly, looking at the ground and rubbing the toe of her shoe on the floor.

"I see…and you had a valid basis for this?" Kafei added in skeptically. So they quickly told their tale.

"Well, that's all well and good, but I think you should get back to the ranch," Link replied. "We're fixin' to have to fight our way outta here," Romani looked at him indignantly, but he and his team were already leaving. "See ya!" With that, they ran out.

"I think we should be goin' outside and callin' that owl," Talon suggested. "I don't relish fightin' no more of these pirates,"

"Yeah, come on," Ingo ushered them outside, where guards were swarming around. Luckily, Team Link was diverting them as the trio made a mad dash for the demolished gate. Three guesses which team was responsible for that. Romani cleared her throat and sang the Song of Soaring, hoping that Gaebola would hear it over all the din that was in the fortress. As it turned out, he did, and came swooping down. Gathering them up quickly, he began flapping back towards Termina Field.

"What did you guys do?" he asked.

"Two other teams showed up," Romani explained.

"That would do it," Gaebola replied. "By the way, I located your wagon while you were at the fortress, so I'm taking you there to save time,"

"Thank you," Romani said gratefully, glad that she wouldn't have to swim in the ocean again that day.

Dong! The clock tower tolled 15:00 as a semi-exhausted Gaebola dropped them off at the wagon and bid them farewell before flying off to rest from his long day of heavy burdens.

"Well, looks like nothin' bothered the wagon," Talon observed before getting in the seat. "C'mon, folks! We got three hours till dusk,"

"And lots of chores to do," Ingo added as he too climbed aboard. Romani nodded and got in the back. Talon cracked the whip and Epona was off. It was a good thing that they parked her by a fountain in a grassy area, as she would be hungry and dehydrated otherwise.

"Why so glum, Romani?" Talon glanced back at her. "Mad 'cause Link told ya to go home?"

"Well…that's part of it…" Romani muttered. "But I gotta wonder if we'll ever find sis…"

"Who knows? All we can do is keep lookin'," Ingo said in a gravelly tone, that being the closest to nice that he sounded.

"And I think that they might be mad at us, too," Romani added.

"Why, darlin'?" Talon asked, puzzled.

"The villains got the stone on account of us," she answered.

"That probably would've happened, anyway," Ingo said dismissively. "Even if we weren't there, those villains would've come out on top out of the three parties there,"

"I guess you're right…" Romani mumbled, still looking at her boots.

They arrived back at the ranch by 15:30. All was still as they had left it, and they finished out the day as usual. In other words, they dictated Romani to cook and Ingo and Talon did the rest of the chores. Sure, they mixed it up a little sometimes, but it was easier to have a routine.

The following morning, Romani woke up earlier than usual, almost 40 minutes before dawn, to be exact. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she donned a clean dress and proceeded downstairs. After looking through the cabinets, she settled on making omelets out of the eggs she found there and the scallions that were in the food crate.

_Romani wonders where Cremia is now…_Romani thought as she prepared the food. _Romani just can't get used to not having her around…_

**Dawn of the Fourth Day**

Ingo and Talon made their appearance not long after the bells finished tolling. As usual, they were arguing about something, although, this time, it seemed to be something of importance.

"I'm just sayin' that we can't count on city hands to tend the ranch indefinitely!" Ingo snapped as he and his portly companion came down the stairs. "Malon or not, we need to get back to Hyrule soon,"

"Romani needs us right now," Talon argued. "And, if we stay here, we may just find Malon and be able to go back to the ranch," Ingo was about to make another retort when they saw Romani at the stove. Apparently, the aroma of cooking food hadn't registered or hadn't clued them in to her presence downstairs. "Good mornin', Romani!" Talon greeted, quickly changing the subject. "Why're you up so early?"

"Romani dunno…" Romani muttered, placing the plates of food and cups of milk on the table. "Just happened that way,"

"Look, I didn't mean that I want to abandon you or Cremia," Ingo quickly explained, though it was hard to tell if he was apologetic or not, given his normal demeanor. "I'm just worried that our animals will be starved or mistreated,"

"I know, you don't have to explain to Romani," she muttered, poking at her food. "Let's just eat," The other two sat down and began digging in. Naturally, it was good food, but the rancher girl's mood troubled the two Hylian ranchers.

"You know, we still haven't checked the swamp," Talon pointed out casually, stealing a glance at Romani. "Who knows what we'll find,"

"Sure, we can go there," Romani agreed, still rather glum.

"Okay, then, I'd better get on the chores," Ingo stood, having already polished his plate. "Let's move, Talon!"

"Right…" Talon nodded and rose too as Ingo hurried out the door. "Romani…chin up. We'll find 'em eventually, and Ingo and me'll stay here until then," He ruffled her hair with a calloused hand and walked out too. She watched him go and contemplated his words as she gathered up the dishes.

_Yeah…we'll find them…and then we can rub it in Team Link's face! _she began washing the dishes a bit aggressively._ But…why would they be in a swamp? And why would anyone kidnap them, anyway?_

The chores were finished in record time that day, and they passed through the gates at 07:00, closing them behind them.

"I sure ain't lookin' forward to sloppin' through the bug-infested swamp…" Talon commented.

"Shut up and deal with it, fatty!" Ingo retorted. "We're doing this for your daughter and niece, remember?"

"Shucks, I know that," Talon replied.

"Now you two keep your fighting down," Romani reprimanded them cheerfully. Glad to see her mood back up, the two followed obediently.

It took barely ten minutes to get to the path that led to Southern Swamp, but they immediately hid when they saw another trio pass. They consisted of a swordsman in a helmet, a rather fancy-looking man with a book, and an armored woman with black hair and a bow.

"Hey," Romani whispered to the others, pointing. "Do ya think that's the girl we keep hearing about?"

"Black hair…" Ingo twitched his mustache. "I'd wager so,"

"Let's follow them," Romani gave a nod and crept out after the group, hanging back as they fought against Black Chuchus and Black Evil Bats near the severely-damaged tree in the middle of the path.

"The monsters are plum different today," Talon observed. "Why could that be?"

"Maybe it's because those villains got the jewel, yesterday," Romani looked unhappy.

"Hmph, I doubt it," Ingo twitched his mustache. "Look, they're moving," The trio crept out and stalked the other group as they headed into the swamp itself. Team Lon's collective noses wrinkled as they neared the compost-filled waters. They, once again, stopped and watched as the other group proceeded onto the stilted house nearby, read the sign, and went inside.

"Now what?" Talon whispered.

"We wait," Romani responded. Ingo twitched his mustache, but assented.

After a short while, an old hag on a broom came out of a window and flew down to bring out a rather large canoe from underneath the shop. The stalked trio came out of the door a short while later and boarded the boat. After a few seconds, they were off.

"There they go…" Ingo muttered, looking at Romani. "Now how in blazes will we follow?" Romani looked contemplative.

"Romani…doesn't know," she admitted. Ingo gave a grunt of annoyance and marched off for the stilted building. The others wondered what he was doing and pursued him.

The clock tolled 08:30. Ingo gave an annoyed groan and looked at his allies.

"Look, it's been almost an hour and a half, we lost them," he stated bluntly.

"It's Romani's fault," Romani said immediately.

"No, it's the hag's fault!" Ingo contradicted, surprisingly. "She should've been back by now!" Talon looked off in the distance, as he had been doing for a while, when he suddenly saw figures on the cliffs above.

"Look!" he pointed. The other two abandoned their conversation to look. "I'll be tarred, feathered, and branded a cucco if that isn't them!"

"Yep, looks like it," Romani agreed. "But how will we…" she smiled. Ingo knew what was coming.

"Oh, no, you're not gonna summon that ratty owl again-" he began, but she was already singing the Song of Soaring.

"Hoot! Hoot! What is it?" Gaebola landed on the nearby owl statue that was to the side of the building.

"We need to get up there," Romani pointed to the ledge. Gaebola sighed. He had been having a decent day and had thought that he wouldn't be lugging ranchers around again. Boy, had he been wrong.

"Okay, grab on," he flapped over to them and grabbed Romani's shoulders. Once situated, they were off and were on the ledge in a minute. "Okay, you're on your own, now," He flapped off.

"I think he's miffed," Ingo commented.

"Never mind, let's get moving," Romani led them forward to an enclosed area that was filled with water. In the center of said area was a small temple that could only be reached by a stone ramp that extended from their position. They hurried across, wondering what the strangers could be up to in the swamp. She had a strong hunch that they might be the kidnappers. Ignoring the acrid air, they hurried along, minding the purple waters below that, obviously, were contaminated.

As the trio emerged inside the temple, they saw the strangers moving aside a curtain of reeds to reveal something that glowed. Deciding not to waste anymore time, Romani called out to them. "Stop right there!" she pointed dramatically. The three spun and the two teams analyzed each other. Talon, actually, was a bit drowsy at the moment, as the air in the place was getting to him. A swift kick in the shin from Ingo quickly roused him. "Romani knows that you have her cousin and sister here, so fess up!" she continued.

"Now, hold on a second, we just arrived," the nerdy guy protested, taking a step forward. Romani whipped out her bow and notched an arrow at him, making him stop cold.

"Not another step, Preppy!" the rancher girl demanded. The black-haired woman seemed to think this nickname funny and snickered slightly, putting a hand to her mouth. "Quiet, Rockface!" Romani added to the woman. Said woman looked rather irked at this and reached for her own bow.

"If you intend to impede our mission, expect no quarter," the helmeted swordsman threatened, drawing his blade.

"Go away, or suffer a beating, yeah?" the woman added, fitting an arrow to her bow.

"Fine, we'll kick your butts and take them back ourselves!" Romani shouted, ready to fight.

"Uh, Romani…" Talon attempted to put some sense into the situation, but Ingo and Romani were already in full combat mode, as were the swordsman and enemy archer.

Ingo rushed at Rusl, attempting to spear him with his pitchfork, but Rusl managed to lock his blade with the other weapon and begin a struggle match. Romani and Ashei aimed at each other, but both of their shots were thrown off as Talon jumped the latter.

"This is some kind of misunderstanding!" the nerd attempted to protest as his female companion finally managed to get Talon off of her and kick him into said nerd, sending them both tumbling.

The swordsman, meanwhile, pulled away from Ingo and took a fierce swipe at the stable hand, only to be blocked by the handle of his implement, butted in the face with the end, and stabbed at as he staggered. He recovered, though, in the nick of time and turned to the side to avoid being skewered.

Talon and the nerd had finally come to a stop and were grappling aggressively on the floor, the nerd valiantly dodging several attempted punches to the head. Suddenly, a small shaft of stone shot from the floor and blindsided Talon across the face, rolling him off of his quarry. Scurrying to his feet, the nerd took some distance from the grappler and raised his hand next to his head as said hand began to glow.

The black-haired woman, meanwhile, was trying to snipe Romani with fire, ice, bomb, and even light arrows, but the ranch girl was more agile than she looked, and returned every shot. Unfortunately, the woman was able to roll and sidestep around the shots just as easily. The swordsman finally wrenched Ingo's pitchfork aside and punched him in the face, sending him reeling back. Unfortunately for the swordsman, Romani decided to send her next bomb arrow at him. The explosion struck his chest and sent him flying backwards into a wall, knocking out Talon in the process, as the rancher to reach Shad, as well as K'Oing Rusl. _Oops. _Romani winced inwardly at the crack that came from Talon.

Ingo gave a fierce cry as he reappeared in the doorway and charged at Shad. The bookworm quickly redirected his rock shackle trap and the pitchfork man found his legs trapped. Romani fired a shot at Shad as this happened, but Ashei quickly fired another shot and deflected the first one. Shad proceeded to assault Ingo with air blades and then knock him flying back out the door with a burst of air.

"You won't outdo Team Lon!" Romani declared, firing a volley of arrows at the two remaining party members. The nerd called up a wall of stone in front of both of them and the missiles clattered uselessly to the floor. The woman jumped up, reaching the top of the wall as it descended into the floor again, and fired a bomb arrow at Romani. This caught her completely by surprise and the explosion knocked her into the wall behind her. She slumped into a heap.

"Sis…" she muttered before seeing only blackness.

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**Of course a lot of the next chapter was covered in Team Eye's story, but we just won't follow Team Eye this time when they're back at the ranch...Remember to review and, if you haven't already, vote on your favorite team on my profile poll.**


	18. Team Lon Level 5

**Okay, I sorta cheated with this chapter as about 50-60% of it was in Team Eye's story. But I cut out the stuff that Team Lon didn't know or see and added in some more Team Lon-centric scenes. I still own nothing!****

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Level 5

Romani slowly began to slip back into consciousness. The ground under her felt like damp dirt and grass, so she must have been moved. Maybe she was kidnapped now too? Wait, someone was speaking nearby…

"…great deity of evil has returned and will soon eradicate the land," it was a guy with an English accent.

"How are we supposed to triumph over a thing like that?" another man's voice added.

"You two act like we've already lost, yeah?" a woman's voice snapped. Romani heard a couple of blows land. "Nothing's decided yet! The giants said that we and these guys still have a part to play, yeah? I'm not goin' down without a fight, and neither are you two, right?" Another blow landed. "You're a bookworm, a nerd, and have way too many manners for your own good, but you've never given up before, even when you really would've rather, yeah?" She was obviously addressing the nerdy guy.

"Well…yes, but-" the nerd tried to reply, but the woman cut him off.

"And Rusl, even when all the kids were stolen from your village, even your son, did you ever call it quits? No, of course not! You strapped on your sword and went out on your own, yeah?" Ingo and Talon began to move again too, though not very much.

"Ashei, that was a different situa-" Rusl was interrupted as well.

"No! This is the same!" Ashei proceeded. "You two are disheartened, that's natural, but if we quit before we try, it'll just make it worse, yeah?"

"You're right!" Romani sat up, wincing at her wounds and headache. "It's better to try and fail than to not try at all," Ingo sat up too.

"As much as I hate to admit it, the brat's right," he said, helping himself up with his pitchfork, being mindful of the prongs. "Even Talon can do something if he puts him mind to it. A snorting snore was his reply. Ingo stomped over and gave the fat rancher a hard kick in the side. "Wake up, you lazy good-for-nothing!"

"What in tarnation?" Talon jumped up, looking around.

"You are correct, as you usually are," Shad admitted, standing up, addressing Ashei. "When the time comes, we shall stand strong and hearten those who stare into the visage of darkness with no light to guide them,"

"Though not as powerful enough to even topple the three villains, we will not waver or fail, whatever comes in the future," Rusl drew his sword and raised it to the sky. "By Ordon's name, I will defend this world!"

"That's the spirit, yeah?" Ashei held out her hand. Shad clapped his hand over it and Rusl did the same.

"GO, TEAM EYE!" they shouted in unison, raising their hands aloft and broke the hold.

Romani couldn't help but feel a little guilty about thinking they were bad guys earlier and attacking without tangible proof. She pulled a bottle of milk from her bag and took a swig, feeling the weariness drop from her limbs. Ingo grunted and grumbled, holding his head and holding himself up with his pitchfork. Romani silently offered him the bottle and he took it. After a mouthful, he felt better too and, a bit reluctantly, gave it to Talon, who finished it off. Now feeling more able to move, Team Lon turned to face Team Eye.

"So…sorry about earlier, Romani guesses we kinda jumped the bell," Romani apologized, scratching the back of her head and looking at the ground.

"Jumped it? Tarnation, girl! You didn't really even ask us!" Talon pointed out.

"My deepest apologies as well," the nerd replied smoothly. "We should have been more pacifist and also,"

"Well, at least we got some good exercise, yeah?" Ashei said nonchalantly with a shrug.

"I'll say," Ingo interjected, mustache bristling. "You fight like a demon, woman!" Ashei wasn't sure if this was a complement or not, so she settled for giving him a warning glare.

"Anyway, Romani was wondering if you have anywhere to stay for the night," Romani asked as the bell tolled 15:00 in the distance.

"Once again, the giants have stolen our time," Shad commented. Romani was confused, as were her companions, but decided against asking.

"No, we cannot enter the city anymore," Rusl responded. "It is now under lockdown…until Majora decides to initiate the next part of its plan,"

"Well, then, feel free to stay at the Romani Ranch tonight," Romani offered, a little surprised at this piece of information. "It's the least Romani can do after the mix-up earlier,"

"Give 'em a kick in the shin is the least you can do…" Ingo mumbled under his breath in an agitated way.

"We would be honored to accept your kind offer, Romani," the bookworm replied kindly. "Please, lead the way,"

The six headed back north, up the trail. On the way, they encountered a few more Black Chuchus and Black Evil bats, but Ashei and Romani were able to decimate them before the party even closed in much.

"You're a good archer," the rancher girl commented to Ashei as their combined party continued on.

"I suppose I could say the same to you," Ashei replied flatly.

"I hate this swamp!" Ingo shouted from near the back of the group.

"I must admit, it is a rather uncomfortable location to travel through," Shad agreed. "But we'll be out soon enough,"

Dong! 15:30 arrived as they set foot in Termina Field again.

"The ranch is this way," Romani pointed to the left and led them through some tall grass.

"Watch out for hidden holes here, folks," Talon warned, nearly tripping into one himself almost immediately, causing yet another snide comment from Ingo.

"Nice one, Mr. Tour Guide," the ranch hand muttered loud enough for Talon to hear. Once out of the tall grass, they headed for the wooden structures up ahead that marked the path to Romani Ranch.

"Hey, Romani!" they all looked over and saw Team Link running over from the eastern side of the field.

"Oh, no, Romani has been caught," Romani said with unease.

"Caught?" Rusl repeated. Link, Lucius, and Kafei finally met up with them.

"You aren't supposed to be out," Kafei stated as though it were fact.

"But Romani can't just let you guys run around doing stuff while Romani just sits at the ranch and hopes that her sister and cousin are all right!" the rancher girl protested.

"And shame on your uncle for letting this happen," Kafei continued coolly. Talon gave a snort, apparently about to doze off again and already halfway to the ground, and Ingo kicked him in the shin.

"What in tarnation?" Talon exclaimed, looking around. "What's the meanin' of kickin' me?"

"You're the subject of the conversation!" Ingo retorted.

"That's no reason to go around kickin' people!" Talon snapped back. "I've been on my feet all day!" As they continued to argue on about how Ingo had to do chores and adventure, the others ignored the two and went back to what they were saying.

"Hey! You have no right to treat her like a kid, yeah?" Ashei stepped forward. "She's just as skilled as me or any other archer out there!"

"And her team is quite formidable," Shad added with a nod.

"Never underestimate even the smallest cog in the clock," Rusl interjected as well.

"I must agree," Lucius said in his soothing tones, staying Kafei's razor-sharp tongue. "Romani has proven herself time and again alongside us. I don't know why she must remain idle,"

"Well, I actually just didn't want the ranch undefended while I was gone," Link admitted, scratching the back of his head as he took off his cap and held it in his hands.

"Really?" Romani was shocked. "Why didn't you tell Romani that?"

"In hindsight, maybe I should have," Link replied apologetically.

"But, would that have really stopped you from leaving?" Kafei pointed out. "You are headstrong, and wouldn't have taken 'no' for an answer. Telling you anything was a moot point. Perhaps we should have just left without a word,"

"Kafei, don't say stuff like that," Link said disapprovingly to the glum thief, a frown on his, usually, smiling face.

"Mayhap we should proceed to the ranch before further conversation," Shad suggested, watching Ingo and Talon as they now grappled on the ground, kicking and biting with the occasional punch.

"Romani agrees," the rancher girl acquiesced as Rusl, Ashei, Link, and Kafei went over to break them up.

A few minutes and a couple of scrapes and bruises later, they were walking grumpily with the rest of the party. Ingo, to say the least, was smug about how Talon now didn't show a bit of drowsiness. Heading up the dirt road, they heard the toll of 16:00. It was thirty minutes, however, before they reached the ranch house.

"…so we just left them, took the jewel, and headed back to Clock Town. But it was locked down and we couldn't get in, so we headed over here," Link concluded.

"So your team has one jewel and theirs has two," Rusl deduced. "This news is a bit troubling,"

"Finally! I'm going to fix a big dinner for everyone!" Talon ran inside the house.

"Hey!" Ingo protested. "You're not sticking me with the animal chores again!" He stood there for a moment, getting no reply, and stomped off to the barn, muttering threats.

"Romani will help cook," Romani declared, going inside the house as well.

After this, the party each went their separate ways to wait for dinner. Lucius went inside to chat with Talon and Romani, assuming they weren't too busy to reply. Ashei drifted off to some remote corner of the ranch. Kafei just plain disappeared and no one could find him or wanted to try. Link and Rusl took a walk around the ranch, chatting, and Shad was left standing by the farmhouse.

The rancher girl and her uncle made short work of throwing together the ingredients for a stew, and spoke with Lucius of their adventures while they worked.

"So you've been everywhere, had a run-in with Team Eye, and still haven't found any clues…" Lucius concluded, sitting at the table.

"Nope!" Romani replied. "We thought that the "black-haired girl" had something to do with it, but it was just Ashei,"

"Apparently, Team Eye's been ahead of us this whole time," Talon added.

"Well, they've been trying to find out the truth behind events of late," Lucius replied. "I daresay what they've found out has been fruitful, but their information is still vague, at best,"

"Stupid, lazy Talon, sticking me with the chores all the time…" Ingo grumbled, putting hay in the proper place and storing the freshly milked milk in jars properly.

"Everyone has a job to do," Kafei stated from his position in the rafters. How he got up there was probably a thief trade secret. Ingo jumped and looked up.

"What in tarnation are you doing hanging around and scaring people?" the ranch hand demanded.

"I'm sitting up here," Kafei replied as though it were obvious. "I just felt compelled to speak on your inane muttering. Pay me no heed if you wish," Ingo turned red at the obvious calmness, wanting to explode, but decided to take the advice and get back to work.

"Job to do, my left shoe…" he grumbled. Kafei ignored him and looked out the upper window at the sky, wondering when he'd get to see his beloved Anju again and why he was even on this journey.

_Friendship…that's why, right?_

"Lucius, where did you learn to cook?" Romani asked, obviously, impressed. Talon had had to go to the attic and get an extra table and chairs, so the mage had taken over the cooking of the soup.

"Books, mostly, but I've gotten in some practice while traveling with Link," he replied. "Between you and I, Link is inept at cooking anything that isn't flour, water, and/or syrup-based,"

"Romani! Could ya come up here and help me?" Talon called from upstairs.

"Comin'!" she hurried up the stairs and to the ladder that extended from a hatch in the ceiling. Talon, somehow, had wedged himself between a table and the edge of the opening of the trapdoor. Romani giggled a bit before trying to help him out of this rather unorthodox fix.

The bell tolled 17:00 as supper was ready.

"Finally," Lucius put the finishing touches on his elixir soup that he had perfected over the years and poured nine bowls, putting them on the table and the extra table, which Talon and Romani had brought out of the attic to allow more people to gave a spot to sit.

"I have to admit, I'm glad you came," Talon commented. "I never knew how to make much but cheese soup and roasted cow,"

"I'm always happy to share my recipes with others," Lucius smiled politely at the complement. "Romani, would you be so kind as to summon the others?"

"Romani would feel privileged," Romani went over and seized the large bell that hung on the wall. Going out the door, she began to ring it vigorously, its sound echoing all over the ranch.

"Is that the dinner bell?" Link and Rusl showed up almost immediately.

"Yep! Come and get it!" Romani replied, allowing them entrance. Ingo showed up next, coming over from the outdoor shower that was concealed by wooden walls, behind the barn. Yes, they had a tub, but there was a shower outside for if you got way too dirty for the tub and Ingo, unfortunately, had fallen in a pile of something very unpleasant and filthy while doing his chores. Enough said.

"About time!" he grumbled, shuffling in the house. Kafei jumped off the roof of the farmhouse and went through the door without a word. Shad arrived next, looking a bit down, but he went in anyway.

"What's up, Shad?" Link asked, already at the table with the others.

"It's nothing," he forced a smile. "What are we having? It smells heavenly,"

"Elixir soup," Lucius put a bowl down at a table for him. The bookworm sat down and stared at the golden broth.

"Where's Ashei?" Rusl asked.

"I'm sure she's about somewhere," Shad replied evasively. Just then, the aforementioned female walked in the door.

"There you are," Lucius commented, handing her a bowl. She took it without a word and slumped into a seat across from Shad, eating without looking up.

"Sorry, no leads yet, and it's kinda hard to look, anyway, since the villains are always one step behind us," Link said to Romani at their end of the group.

"Well, Romani has searched everywhere. She might as well retire," the rancher girl slumped.

"Now, now, Romani, there's no reason to be talkin' like that," Talon interjected. "We may be out of places to look, but that don't mean a thing!"

"If you truly care, you'll find them, in the end," Kafei said darkly. This thief really did have a way of veiling things in pessimism. Of course, considering his sad back-story with Anju and the moon, it wasn't surprising.

The meal ended around 17:30 and most of the myriad of people decided to go about looking into sleeping arrangements. Kafei, of course, slipped away after about a minute, disliking the noise. Ashei left too, not really into interior decorating all that much. Shad, after being almost bowled over by moving furniture a few times, decided that he would leave the house for a while too.

"No, I say that we need to put the couch over here!" Ingo shoved into the position he indicated.

"But then there's no room for the cots!" Talon objected, shoving it over to another spot. "Here is where it goes,"

"Actually, that would block the stairs," Link pointed out.

"Perhaps in the middle of the room?" Lucius suggested.

"The table's in the way!" Ingo objected. "And who's gonna move it?" After a short argument, Link and Talon ended up carrying the tables and chairs up to the attic. Rusl decided to leave around this point, as Lucius and Ingo were now in a bit of a debate over where to put the cots vs. the couch. When Link and Talon came back downstairs, they added in their two bits and Lucius gave up, going to stand in the corner and waiting to heal any injuries that were sure to ensue at the rate this was going. At this point, Rusl came back in, chuckling to himself, and broke up the fight. Once Romani had shown back up from her sudden disappearance to the bathroom, she and Rusl made the others work together peacefully. Ingo tripped Link and tried to pretend it was an accident. Okay, almost peacefully. A fight then ensued and Link, Ingo, and Talon were soon having it out. Lucius sighed and prepared to break it up as his staff glowed.

**Night of the Fourth Day**

Arrangements, as a bruised and bloody Ingo informed the combined groups, were not good.

"We can only hold five or six in the house," the grumpy farm hand informed the combined teams. "Three or four will have to sleep in the barn,"

"I call!" Link shouted.

"I do too!" Lucius added.

"And I," Kafei said.

"Romani, too!" Romani interjected.

"And I ain't sleepin' in the barn!" Ingo shouted. Talon was already snoozing on the floor, so they knew where he'd sleep.

"Looks like we get the barn," Rusl sighed, looking to his comrades and starting out the door.

"The barn?" Shad repeated, looking very unhappy. "But think of the disease and dirt!" Ashei grabbed his arm and dragged him along.

"Come on, city boy…" she muttered, rolling her eyes at his antics.

"I beg of you!" was the last hammed up thing that the other six heard before the door shut.

"What a drama king," Romani and Link commented simultaneously.

"That was odd," Talon added in.

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**Ahh, isn't it funny how men can't ever agree on anything? And Talon always siezes the opportunity for some shut-eye, doesn't he? Anyway, I noticed how it seems that there's not much of transition breaks between paragraphs on this site so I guess I'll start putting in more divider things, eventually...zzz...(Ingo kicks me). Huh? Anyway, remember to review and vote on your favorite team if you haven't already. Go Team Lon! The first chapter where the wrong team says their "go team" thing.**


	19. Team Lon Level 6

**Alas, we have reached the end of this little tale. Next is Team Link, the actual heroes of the tale. Hopefully, mysteries will be solved as they go through their adventure. I still own nothing!

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Level 6

**Dawn of the Fifth Day**

Romani woke at dawn, as usual, that day. From the sounds of it, Ingo and Talon weren't going about their chores yet. The house was quiet. After getting quickly dressed, Romani walked downstairs, only to find the cots and couch empty.

"Where'd Grasshopper's team go?" she muttered to herself. Proceeding forward, she spotted a note on the table, folded over once and not even sealed. She picked it up and read it. "Lanky, Stout, wake up!" she called upstairs.

"We're gettin' up!" Ingo retorted. This was followed by a smacking noise, which could only mean that he had roused Talon in his special way. Romani raced out of the house, dropping the note back on the table, and over to the barn.

"You guys!" Romani came bursting in the door. Ashei was up and had her bow in her hand in a second. "Grasshopper's team is gone!"

"Gone?" Shad repeated.

"Yes, and they left a note," the rancher girl said, distressed. "Come in for breakfast and read it," Ashei grumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and donned her armor as Shad went back to grooming himself.

Team Eye and Team Lon all sat at the table, eating scrambled cucco eggs and roasted beef with a cup of milk each, talking over the letter that now sat in the center of the table. It was written in Lucius's untidy, but graceful script.

_Dear Romani, _

_We have left for Ikana Canyon early, so as to get a head start on Team Shadows. Don't worry; we'll be back by the end of the day._

_Best wishes, Lucius _

"Well, they left early and they'll be back," Rusl concluded. "Why are you so distressed?"

"Romani doesn't know," Romani shrugged. "Maybe Romani was looking forward to seeing them in the morning before they took off again,"

"If they'll be back, they'll be back," Ingo interjected. "Now let's hurry up and eat! You two are helping me with the chores today!"

"Right…" Romani agreed.

"Okay," Talon yawned. Ashei, Shad, and Rusl all exchanged a look that clearly stated that they expected him to be asleep pretty soon, maybe even in the middle of a chore.

Team Eye set off on a group walk while the trio of ranchers set about their usual chores.

"Romani wishes Cremia was here to help with this," Romani commented as they moved milk containers and pitched hay. Ingo and Talon decided not to comment.

After about an hour, they were done for the moment and took a seat in front of the barn, enjoying a rare moment of idleness. In the midst of this, though, they couldn't shake the mysterious air of animosity that hung heavy in the air.

"Somethin' big's gonna happen today," Talon stated suddenly. "D'you think it has somethin' to do with that evil power that Rusl and them done mentioned?"

"Who knows?" Ingo replied, looking unhappy at the topic.

"Romani has a bad feeling…" Romani muttered as the morning breeze turned chill.

"Tell ya what, since we got this idle time, let's go inside and make some cocoa," Talon suggested. "Then we can tell stories for a while,"

"Okay," Romani nodded. Ingo looked like he was about to decline but figured "what the heck" and nodded his agreement as well.

"This is the tale of the rancher that got his hand bitten off by a horse," Talon said in as spooky a voice as possible. "It all started 100 years ago, in Hyrule. There was a rancher that done mistreated his horses and threw spite at the goddesses for creatin' animals. See, he never wanted to be no rancher, but his dad done kicked the bucket and forced him into it. So he hated animals, and his horses was miserable. One, day one got plum tired of his abuse and bit off his hand. The guy went screamin' somethin' awful into the hills and was never seen again…but they say he still haunts Lon Lon Ranch…" Romani hugged her knees and trembled slightly. Even Ingo was a bit disturbed by this. Talon suddenly dropped the spooky demeanor and started to laugh. "Malon always liked to hear that 'un on the eve of the Autumn Festival. Don't take it seriously, darlin'. I been workin' at the ranch for years and there ain't no ghost of no one-handed rancher,"

"Don't scare Romani like that!" Romani reprimanded him.

"Sorry," Talon scratched his head apologetically.

So they whiled away the morning, telling tales of varying antiquity and scariness. Ingo's story about the werewolf farm hand that ate his boss for being lazy brought an end to storytime as Romani had to break up a potential fight and suggest that they go for a walk like Team Eye.

The bell tolled 10:00 as they stepped out the door.

"Is it just me, or is it gettin' mighty cold out here?" Talon asked, looking around as though he would spot the source of the weather.

"Who knows what's going on," Ingo replied. "I just hope that it don't come bother the cows,"

"Sis…" Romani muttered, staring off into the distance.

"What is it?" Talon asked, looking at her. "What about Cremia?"

"Romani…Romani just knows that sis is involved with this…" Romani said in a trance-like voice. "We need to go to Clock Town," Suddenly, steel-gray clouds swept overhead, overtaking the blue sky swiftly.

"Look at that!" Ingo pointed at the evil aura coming from the direction of Clock Town. Chilly and unpleasant raindrops began to pour down as lightning thundered ominously in the distance.

"We've gotta get over there immediately!" Talon declared.

"Right! Let's go, Lanky and Stout!" Romani ran off with Ingo and Talon following. Running through the gate, they fought off a seemingly infinite supply of Black Chuchus and Black Guays, finally reaching Termina Field and beholding the debacle that waited.

"Clock Town is on fire!" Rusl shouted, he and his team having caught up. Romani charged headlong into the enemies and the six carved into the mass of Black Gobos, Black Leevers, Black Chuchus, and various other dark enemies as they fought their way up to the demolished south gate. The clock tolled 11:00 as they got to the gate, only to be accosted by a Black Cyclops.

"Shad, trap!" Ashei shouted. "Romani, with me!" Shad wasted no time in trapping the raging giant in a sinkhole, inches before it clubbed him with its massive fist. Ashei and Romani both fired a simultaneous light arrow into its eye. It flailed and screamed before falling with a crash. Rusl, Ingo, and Talon knocked out several more enemies as the hordes of darkness kept coming.

"Into the town! We're overmatched!" Shad shouted, leading the way in. More of the same were plaguing the Town Guard within. Several guards were beating off Black Gibdos and Black Stalfos in the south section of town.

"Fight! Fight to the last man!" Viscen was yelling from in front of the clock tower, where he stood tall among the corpses of many monsters, a golden spear in hand. "Protect the citizenry!" The two teams waded in and decimated the foes in a few minutes.

"Get to East Clock Town and fortify the sewers!" Viscen ordered the soldiers in the area. "I don't want anything getting through!" The guards saluted and ran off towards North Clock Town, planning to take a shortcut around the brunt of the battle. The guard captain then approached Team Eye as Team Lon ran off to East Clock Town.

Four giants burst through the wall as Team Lon ran over to East Clock Town. They stopped in their tracks as they stared in awe at the monsters.

"How in tarnation are we supposed to beat that?" Ingo spat, pointing.

"I don't know but-" Romani was cut off as a guard smashed into the ground mere inches from them. Talon bent to check on him.

"Blast it, he's gone," the rancher said angrily. Their attention went back to the fight as one of the Cyclopes fell heavily to the ground, causing a miniature earthquake.

"Is that…the bad guys?" Romani exclaimed in disbelief. "Are they protecting the town?"

"Save your questions for later!" Ingo ran forward and hurled his pitchfork into the back of one of their calves. The giant staggered and slowed in its attack on Team Shadows. Romani unleashed a volley of arrows on another Cyclops and rendered it a pincushion in appearance. Team Shadows dodged the last one's mighty swing as the other two turned to deal with Team Lon. Vaati blinded it with a wind spell as it advanced on his companions and Knil jumped on Ganondorf's fist to be Warlock Launched. The second Cyclops fell as quickly as the first. The third was so full of arrows that it looked like a porcupine, thanks to Romani's repeated volleys, and Talon launched Ingo into its eye, pitchfork first, and took it down while Romani distracted the fourth with barrages of arrows. Knil ran up the back of its leg and launched himself up to its shoulder. Dodging its slap, he sliced across its throat and it fell over as he leapt clear. The four resounding impacts shook the town.

"Aren't you guys the ones that stole the blue sacred jewel?" Romani asked coming to a stop next to the villain trio.

"Maybe," the wind mage replied evasively. "But now isn't the time for that,"

"We need to find Team Link and get those other two jewels," the Link-look-alike stated flatly.

"In the middle of this battle?" Vaati exclaimed. "We'll never find them,"

"We will if we find the one who's behind this," the desert sorcerer pointed out.

"True…" Vaati admitted.

"People of Clock Town! Why do you resist?" an eerie, female voice suddenly boomed throughout the town. "Your destruction is inevitable,"

"Where is that coming from?" Ingo looked around in a jerky fashion, obviously perturbed.

"Submit to your fate, the fate that you avoided all those years ago, when the moon failed to fall," the voice continued.

"What in tarnation? That's a ridiculous notion!" Talon yelled.

"It sounds like it came from the clock tower," Knil observed. "That's where we'll find Link,"

"We're coming too!" Romani piped up determinedly. "No one kidnaps Romani's sister and cousin and gets away with it!" Knil gave a humph and the six ran to South Clock Town, bumping into Team Eye as they arrived. Team Link was already there, looking up the tower at whatever was up there.

"Majora!" Rusl called up the tower. "Come down! Take what justice awaits you!"

"Majora!" the other heroes and villains, except Shad and Ashei, exclaimed, looking at him.

"Her emblem is on every one of these black monsters," Shad pointed to a fallen Black Gibdo and, sure enough, the Majora emblem was emblazoned under its chin.

"Very impressive. Most warriors wouldn't have seen that and would have just moved on after making the kill," Majora's Wrath came drifting down to land in front of them. Yet, it wasn't Majora's Wrath, the whips were gone from her arms and the face was more defined. More muscle tone and a deeper and darker power emanated from this body.

"Majora…I saw you die," Link grimaced.

"Did you?" she taunted. "I am a cursed deity, I won't die so easily! Even the Fierce Deity can't defeat me now!" She raised her hand. "Now feel the power of Majora Chaos!" Dark versions of Odolwa and Goht entered from the gate and tackled Team Lon, carrying them away into East Clock Town.

Romani grunted in pain as Dark Goht bucked her and Ingo off of its horn. Dark Odolwa threw Talon across the area, leaving a groove in the pavement as he landed.

"Blast!" Ingo scrambled to his feet. "We've gotta put these things down!" Dark Goht began running laps around the area as Romani and Talon jumped back to their feet.

"You beasts ain't gonna beat us down!" Talon declared as Dark Odolwa began a tribal chant.

"Sis…and Mally…give them back!" Romani shouted. A ring of fire flew out from Dark Odolwa's body. Romani dispelled it with an Ice arrow and fired a light arrow into Dark Odolwa's face. Unfortunately, it just blocked it with its massive tower shield. Suddenly, Dark Goht came charging by and bowled Romani over. She rolled painfully, being battered by the trampling hooves, as it passed over. Ingo, meanwhile, locked pitchfork against sword as he attempted to fight Dark Odolwa toe-to-toe. Talon jumped and grabbed onto Dark Goht's leg, carefully avoiding the whirring gears, and climbed up onto the beast's back. Romani coughed up a little blood and struggled back to her feet. "Take this!" she shot a light arrow into the back of Dark Goht's head, barely missing Talon as he clambered up to bash away at the monster with his steel fists. Ingo still struggled with Dark Odolwa, finally having his weapon wrenched aside and getting smacked in the face with the tower shield. Luckily, though, before his foe could counterattack, a bolt of light came flying from the direction of the clock tower and struck near Dark Odolwa, blowing its shield asunder. A loud explosion followed in the distance, as though something powerful had struck something virtually indestructible. Ingo seized his chance and shoved his implement deep into Dark Odolwa's chest. It screamed in agony and sprang away, chanting. A swarm of locusts came flying at Ingo and his weapon was still lodged in his foe's chest…

Meanwhile, Talon was still bashing away at Dark Goht, despite its bellows of pain and attempts to buck him off. Romani, though dizzy and threatening to faint at any given moment, managed to roll out of the way of a charge and lodge another light arrow in the back of its leg. Lightning shot in all directions from its horn as it charged towards the Milk Bar, still trying to buck off its wayward passenger. Talon jumped off as it crashed and Romani looked over quickly when she heard Dark Odolwa's chanting. Seeing the locusts, she shot a fire arrow into the swarm's midst and they burst into a fiery conflagration. Dark Odolwa charged at Ingo, swinging its massive sword. Ingo dived out of the way, leaving Romani in the path. She stood firm and loosed a volley of arrows, making her opponent stagger and hesitate. Talon charged in at this moment and decked the tall warrior a good one across the face, pulling out Ingo's pitchfork as the enemy reeled.

"Catch!" the tubby rancher tossed it to his comrade, who caught it, somehow, without hurting himself. Dark Odolwa shouted in rage and kicked Talon back a few yards, charging at Ingo full tilt. He blocked the blade with his pitchfork, locking it in place as he grimaced and sweat of effort dripped from his face. Romani took careful aim at the back of Dark Odolwa's head and fired a light arrow into it. The monster roared and collapsed to its knees. Suddenly, it exploded, leaving only its mask behind. Dark Goht did the same in the wreckage of the Milk Bar. The two masks floated into the middle of the area and swirled around each other. The trio watched in awe.

_The curse has been broken. The spirits that have been trapped are now free._

"Huh?" Romani looked around for the source of the voice, but found none. The two masks exploded in a shower of golden sparks, leaving behind two similar-looking girls in similar attire. "S-Sis…?" She took a slow step forward, wobbling a bit from her injuries. "Sis!" she ran forward, as did Talon and Ingo. Romani picked up the older woman by the shoulders, gazing into her unconscious face. Talon did the same with his daughter.

"Malon! Can ya hear me?" he called, tears coming to his eyes. Malon's eyes twitched and she slowly opened them.

"Dad…?" she muttered. "W-Where are we?"

"Clock Town, darlin'," he replied, so happy to see his 'little girl' again. "We found you in some masks," Malon shuddered.

"I…I can't remember anything after I saw that mask…" she murmured. "Just darkness…and fear…" Cremia started to awake as well.

"Sis!" Romani called. Cremia looked at her, her gaze a little unfocused.

"Romani?" she said quietly, glancing around a little. "What are we doing here? Why is the town on fire?"

"Sis!" Romani hugged her tight, getting tears and blood on her dress, but didn't care. She'd finally found her sister. Her, not Link, not Lucius, not Kafei, had done it. She had done it herself, with her own team. "Romani looked everywhere for you! She went through canyon and sea!" Cremia looked a bit saddened as the situation sunk in.

"I'm sorry to have worried you…" she said softly. "But I don't know what happened. All I remember is a sinister voice and…a horrible mask…"

"Looks like more survivors!" a guard shouted as he and his battalion came running over. "Get up, you five! We need to get to the safe zone!" Romani nodded and allowed herself to be led along, but she wouldn't let go of Cremia's hand.

"Well, Romani, we did it," Talon commented.

"Now I guess all that's left is…" Ingo added.

"We'll…protect…everyone…" Romani passed out.

"Romani!" Talon and Ingo shouted as the darkness embraced her again.

**End Team Lon Story**

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**Yes, its a cliffhanger and yes, I'm sorry in advance. But, remember, there's final story after we've seen how all the teams get to the final battle. You'll get the closure, hopefully, there. Remember to review and vote if you haven't already.**


	20. Team Link Level 1

**Finally, Team Link is here! Now we get to see them tick. Note: Link is a bit like Sonic and just plain silly sometimes. Kafei is a bit violent, as well as emo. Guess I channeled too much of Raven here or something. Anyway, on with the tale before I tell the whole plot. I still own nothing!****

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Team Link Story

**Level 1**

**Dawn of the First Day**

A rooster crowed right outside of the downstairs window, waking Link from his slumber and sending him ceiling-ward. He hit the floor with a thump, moaning and rubbing his head.

"Do you have to be so loud?" Kafei grumbled from his cot. They had gotten in late from their hunt last night and, as such, had fallen asleep immediately and weren't too keen to get up yet.

"Sorry, it was the rooster," Link apologized groggily, grabbing his hat from the arm of the couch and putting it on.

"Hey, guys!" Romani came bounding down the stairs. "Romani sees you're up bright and early," Lucius sat up at her shout.

"Is the house afire?" he exclaimed. Seeing no flame, he slumped back to the couch pillows and rubbed his eyes. "Is it morning already?"

"Well, it is difficult not to be up bright and early, what with Link thumping around like a child and Romani hopping around like a cucco on Chateau Romani," Kafei commented, getting up and straightening his purple hair and purple and white outfit.

"Hey, I resemble that remark," Link replied with a smile. Apparently, he'd learned to take Kafei's sharp remarks in stride. He walked over to the cabinets and started looking through them. "What's for breakfast?" Romani giggled.

"Link, it's very impolite to rifle through another's cabinets in their own home," Lucius commented, rising elegantly to his feet. Clad in graying robes and bearing blonde hair, which he wore with a ribbon binding it on the lower parts of the strands, and red eyes that glinted with intelligence, it was obvious that he was a mighty mage in deceptive clothing.

"Well, Grasshopper, if you'll let Romani over there, she'll make some food," Romani replied to the aforementioned question that he had directed.

"Would ya mind movin'?" Ingo asked crankily. "There's chores to be done,"

"Oh, sorry, Lanky!" Romani stepped off of the stairs and went over to the 'kitchen'. Ingo stomped outside to get started on the chores. A loud, obnoxious snoring, however, still radiated from upstairs…

Breakfast was ready by 06:30, leaving Ingo little time to do much more than get started in the barn before Romani called him back to the house. After rousing Talon (see Ingo smacking him upside the head and Link having to laugh about it and then receiving one of Kafei's famous disapproving looks as a result), the six allies sat down for a nice meal. Link entertained everyone with an anecdote about the time he'd had to go fetch Lunar Blossom Nectar in the Lost Woods.

At length, the meal was finished, and Romani asked the dreaded question.

"So…what did you find out about sis and Mally?" she asked. "Do you know where they are?" Link looked pointedly away, as he was wont to do when being the bearer of bad news. Lucius looked like he was trying to think of a nice way to put it. Kafei, being blunt as always, sighed and reported flatly.

"From what we gather, that was the last time that anyone around here was Cremia or Malon. The cart was empty, so I'd assume they'd been kidnapped," he concluded.

"Well, the Gorman brothers were stealing the milk when we arrived," Lucius pointed out as Romani looked to him. "But, upon interrogation, they swore that the cart was empty when they arrived," Romani stared, downcast, at the table, where her empty plate still was. Link put a hand on her shoulder and gave one of his dorky but loveable smiles.

"Don't worry, Romani. We'll find her," he reassured her.

"Actually…we're supposed to go hunting for the sacred jewels, so as to keep them out of harm's way," Kafei reminded him.

"But you can't just abandon Romani's sister and cousin!" Romani protested.

"Don't worry, if we find any leads during our trip, we'll look into them," Lucius said assuredly with a polite smile and nod.

"I doubt we will…" Kafei muttered under his breath as he headed for the door. "Well, we won't be getting back to sleep today, so we best be heading to Clock Town so that we can prepare for our journey,"

"All right, I'm coming," Link stood. "Stay here, Romani, the ranch needs you to take care of it, even with Ingo and Talon in from Hyrule,"

"We'll see you later, Romani," Lucius added as the team headed out the door. "Leave the hunt to us!"

The three strode off over the rolling grass of the ranch, heading for the gate and, ultimately, the center of Termina, Clock Town.

"So, Kafei, looking forward to seeing Anju?" Link asked teasingly. Kafei was not amused.

"What do you think, you unsubtle dolt?" he replied icily, shooting Link a glare that would've blown up the moon.

"Now, now, we'll be staying at the inn tonight, anyway," Lucius intervened, lest Link be missing teeth or limbs soon. "Link, do watch your tongue,"

"Aww, you're no fun at all," Link gave a shrug and took the lead.

_Why do I put up with him, again?_ Kafei thought bitterly.

The bells tolled 07:00 as they reached Termina Field.

"Just think…" Lucius commented suddenly as the party circumvented the little area, by habit, where Takkuri hung out. "Those tolls once measured the last heartbeats and mourning cries of Termina,"

"Don't remind me," Link said uncomfortably. "But we managed to stop it. Romani got rid of the aliens that were stealing her cows, and Kafei got to marry to woman of his dreams," He paused. "Hey, Kafei," Kafei gave him a one-eyed glower in warning. Link plowed on anyway. "How did you meet Anju, anyway? You're the Mayor's son, an aristocrat, and she's an innkeeper and a carpenter boss's daughter," Kafei gave a snort of annoyance and batted a Chuchu into the distance with one roundhouse kick.

"Destiny works in strange ways," he answered mysteriously, heading ahead for town and booting another Chuchu hard into the walls of said town, reducing it to a gooey splat mark.

"Oh, yeah, that explains everything…" Link sighed in defeat and followed him. Lucius put a hand to his forehead. Sometimes he couldn't believe Link's rudeness or ignorance. Putting aside the desire to whack the boy a good one over the head with his staff, he hurried after his companions.

"Halt!" the guard stopped them at the gate. "Oh, Mr. Kafei!" they stood down. "How are you today, sir?" Dong! It was 07:30.

"I've been better," he murmured darkly as the other two caught up and went into town with them.

"Okay, here's what we need," Lucius pulled out a list that was written in his graceful and chaotic scrawl. "A week's worth of supplies, six red potions, six green potions, and 33 rupees to stay at the inn tonight," He looked up. "It wouldn't hurt to have the money to eat out, if anyone desires," Link was about to make the predictable comment about Anju's cooking, but he remembered how much it had hurt flying through the door of the shooting gallery, last time he'd brought it up, so he, wisely, remained silent.

"Well, then, let's get over to the General Store!" Link led the way. Kafei attempted to slip off, but Lucius caught him by the shoulder.

"This may sound cheap or low, but I'd rather have you along so that we can get a discount," the mage explained.

"Fine, everyone knows that we'll need the money when Link doesn't like his food today," Kafei agreed emotionlessly, with a barely-noticeable twinge of annoyance hidden beneath.

Around 08:00, they walked into the General Store. The surfer dude looked up from his Zora magazine that he was perusing and greeted them.

"Hey, what's up, dudes? Can I, like, help you?"

"Yes, we need these things," Lucius read out the list, and, eventually, a pile of purchases was on the counter as the cashier pulled them out.

"Okay, dudes, this'll run ya…oh, wait, you're Mr. Kafei," he spotted Kafei.

"Last time I checked," Kafei said with mock joy that held creepy disdain and a matching creepy smile that looked like it belonged on a serial killer. Needless to say, everyone took a step back.

"Okay, dudes, this'll run ya, with, like, the 25% discount, 351 rupees," the surfer dude said a bit nervously. Kafei dropped the creepy smile and headed out the door as Link fished out several purple, red, yellow, blue, and green rupees. He practically emptied his wallet onto the counter, so sore was this blow to his wallet.

They walked out of the shop, around 08:30, having finally stowed all of their supplies away.

"Man, that guy is a piece of work," Link commented, looking around for their missing 'ally'.

"This is true, but you did agitate him," Lucius pointed out.

"Okay, okay, I get the point," Link admitted. "I'll quit picking at him so much, but it's fun," he walked off.

_And getting beat up is fun, too?_ Lucius wondered, following the green-clad hero.

Kafei was only starting to calm down as the clock tower tolled 16:00, much to his headache and annoyance. If you've ever been next to a bell tower when it rings, you'd understand. As it stopped, he headed down the ramps surrounding the town's namesake. He paused when he spotted a wagon sitting in the south gate, obviously being stopped by guards.

_Do I recognize those two?_ He squinted his brown eyes. _Oh, well, one way to find out._ He set off for the gate at a fair pace.

"Romani, Talon?" Kafei called out as he approached the gate. "On a milk delivery, I assume?"

"Yep," Talon replied. "But we're havin' a spot of trouble gettin' into town,"

"Well, you will if you don't have the proper papers," Kafei answered flatly. "Captain Viscen has ordered restricted traffic in the face of monster increases,"

"Well, we need to get in, so what do we have to do?" Romani asked, getting a little impatient. Kafei turned to the guards.

"Let them in, I can vouch for them," he said. "They are the ranchers from Romani Ranch," He pointed to Romani. "In fact, she is the acting owner, at this moment,"

"All right, Mr. Kafei," the guard relented. "Come in, Miss and Sir,"

"Thank'ee kindly," Talon nodded, ushering Epona on and towards East Clock Town.

"Thanks, Ninja!" Romani called to Kafei as they passed him.

"Don't mention it!" he called after her with a small smile. He watched her go and then his smile faded back to his usual glum expression. "As you, were, men," he added to the soldiers before setting off for the Stock Pot Inn.

"Okay, I give! You are the masters of this!" Link flopped overdramatically to the ground as the Bombers cheered about having beaten the hero at baseball. Lucius couldn't help but chuckle a little at Link's antics.

"The Bombers win again!" Tim proclaimed. "Come, men! Let's go find more people to help!" The five boys ran off. Link continued to lie on the ground. Lucius got up from where he was sitting, in front of the fairy fountain, and went over to him.

"Drama hour's over now," he said, nudging the green-clad man with his boot.

"Five more minutes," Link replied, pretending to be asleep. Lucius sighed and raised his staff. A stream of high-pressure water shot up from the ground and blasted him up a ways, soaking him, before slamming him back down. "Okay! I'm getting up!" He scrambled to his feet. "Jeez, Lucius! You could hurt somebody doing stuff like that!"

"No great loss, really," Kafei commented, coming through the gate from South Clock Town.

"Oh, hey, Kafei!" Link waved unnecessarily. "Are we heading over to the inn, now?" Kafei's expression didn't change.

"Well, that's where I was going, but, then, I heard children beating a helpless man and had to come see," the thief replied. "But I see that Lucius is fine,"

"Ouch," Link commented. "You really hurt me sometimes, Kafei, old buddy," Kafei rolled his eyes and they left for the inn. "Can we stop over there, first?" Link pointed to the café/diner across the street.

"Well, Kafei? We have enough money," Lucius added. "Care to join us?"

"I'll get some pastries for Anju," Kafei said in his way of agreeing. "But I'm not sticking around longer," Link gave a shout of joy, attracting odd looks from passerby, and ran into the building. Lucius hurried after him to escape the looks and Kafei considered donning a paper bag. You were judged by the company you keep, after all.

"One cucco meal!" Link ordered, once they had reached the counter.

"I'll have the Deku Salad," Lucius said politely.

"Okay, those will be ready shortly," the cashier replied. "60 rupees," Link forked over three red rupees, the last dregs of his money, and he and Lucius sat down at a table. Kafei approached the counter.

"A pastry box to go," the thief said quietly.

"Okay, Mr. Kafei, that comes to 15 rupees," the cashier informed him. He forked out a yellow rupee and a blue one. "Your box will be ready soon," Naturally, the to-go orders were made faster, but Kafei still had to wait and, to avoid having to talk to the townsfolk, he ended up sitting with his team anyway.

After chatting about small things for a while, well, Link and Lucius chatted; Kafei sat there, listening and only making the occasional snide remark that had a point but was, nonetheless, rude, their orders arrived at the table.

"All right!" Link dug into his food with gusto. Lucius tried to dignify himself in Link's company by eating slowly and quietly, having learned that trying to point out his bad manners was like taking a shield up against a tidal wave in mortal combat. Kafei gave Link a look that clearly told his opinion, nothing good, I assure you. He then calmly picked up his box and carried it out the door.

Crossing the street, Kafei finally came to his home, the Stock Pot Inn. Sure, you would think that the Mayor's son would detest living at a peasant's inn after living at the Mayor's Residence for most of his life, but love made you do some things that you normally wouldn't.

"Kafei!" Anju looked up from her books as he walked in. Upon seeing that he wasn't a customer, her face lit up like the Carnival of Time sky.

"Anju!" he bounded over the counter, putting the pastry box carefully down in the process, and scooped her into his arms. They shared a loving kiss, but it was, sadly, interrupted when the postman came jogging in. He looked at them for a moment, his face registering shock and curiosity, but he eventually decided to get their attention the only way he could. With his trademark yell.

"Ya!" he said loudly. Kafei and Anju broke apart. The latter turned bright red as the former shot a death glare in the postman's direction. "Sorry to interrupt! I've got a letter for Anju!" he placed it on the counter. "I'll be going now," he jogged out quicker than he usually would. Kafei sighed and put Anju down.

"What's the letter say?" he asked. Anju picked it up and opened it.

"Oh, it's just something from the grocer," Anju replied. "The vegetables are going to be a bit late tomorrow,"

"That's all?" Kafei put a hand to his forehead. "Why couldn't the postman have waited a while?"

"Now you know him, honey, he'd break down the door in the middle of the night if he deemed it necessary to get a letter to you," Anju gave an amused smile. Kafei returned it, his eyes uncharacteristically bright.

"Well, we might as well have supper," Kafei said after they had stared into each others' eyes for a few minutes. Anju looked a bit unhappy at this. "Don't worry, I know you hate cooking," He held up the box. "We can just eat these, for now," Anju gave a giggle.

"You always did know how to make me happy," she commented.

"Comes with the territory," Kafei said proudly as they headed to the dining table that sat in the corner of the kitchen.

"Link…aren't you done yet?" Lucius asked as Link licked the residue from his plate.

"But their fried cucco is so good!" Link protested as Lucius finally jerked the plate away.

"That's no reason to embarrass the both of us," the mage sighed. Suddenly, a soldier burst into the shop.

"There's been a big fight in Northern Clock Town," he informed everybody in the room. "The Town Guard is cleaning up the mess, so don't go over there for the rest of the day,"

"A fight?" Link got up and went over to the guard, as did Lucius. "Who? Why?"

"You'll have to ask them yourself," the guard replied distractedly. "They're being treated and escorted back to the Stock Pot Inn,"

Link and Lucius burst through the front door as the guard finished telling Kafei and Anju the news. The poor couple just kept having their moments interrupted.

"Oh, it's just you two," Kafei frowned as he saw Lucius and Link.

"Kafei! Be nice to your friends," Anju reprimanded lightly. "I'm sorry," she added to the other two as the guard ran out.

"Do you know who's being brought here?" Lucius inquired.

"Not a clue," Kafei flipped idly through the inn log, as though it had a clue. Link and Lucius went over by the front desk to wait as well.

_I wonder who was in the fight, and against who?_ Link wondered. _Must've been big to get the Town Guard _this_ involved…_

_

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_**Alright, I've noticed some glaring errors in some of the earlier stories. Apparently, neither I nor the reviewer noticed them or said anything and it's too late to go back now, as I've had to start throwing out earlier chapters from the uploader to make room. So sad, but I try to fix them in the more recent stuff as I write it. Review and let me know about your opinions on the chapter and any obvious grammar errors that just make no sense. And the poll is still open, if you haven't visited yet.**


	21. Team Link Level 2

**The story of Link continues. More obnoxiousness and more interrupted moments await. I still own nothing!****

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Level 2

It wasn't a minute later that the mystery people finally came wearily in the door.

"Oh, there they are now, Kafei," Anju commented, pulling him from checking the books. Team Link turned to see the newcomers. The other group consisted of a man in a leather jacket, sandals, and a helmet (these were the highlights of the outfit), a man in a rather fancy outfit, and a woman in red pants, a gray shirt and with armor on her arms, lower torso, and metal boot/greaves on her feet.

"Link," the leather jacket-wearing swordsman said at once, recognizing his former apprentice and friend.

"Rusl," Link came forward and helped him as he wobbled slightly. "We heard about the intruders earlier," The bell tolled 18:00 in the background as a wolf howled.

**Night of the First Day**

"Yes, they were quite formidable," Shad interjected, glancing at how Ashei looked like she was about to keel over just as much as Rusl, though she hid it as well as she could. "But we should relocate to environs of more comfort,"

"Yes, of course," Link agreed, helping Rusl towards the stairs as Lucius offered to help Ashei. She, naturally, refused and batted his arm aside, but he seemed unperturbed and followed her up the stairs, making sure she didn't fall.

"Good night, Anju," Kafei kissed her hand and gave a small smile before following his comrades. Anju smiled after him for a while before she noticed that Shad was still in the room.

"Yes, Mr. Shad?" she asked, blushing slightly from being seen smiling so sappily after her husband.

At length, they finally got down the hall to room 5, where, apparently, Team Eye was staying (at least according to Rusl). Lucius wondered at the sounds he heard from room 2 as he passed. They certainly sounded deliberately quiet, but, being polite, he elected to not pry in anybody's business while they were in their room. Link and Lucius opened the door for Rusl and Ashei, using Rusl's room key, and helped them to their beds. After a bit of argument, Link was forced into removing Ashei's armor. He did so reluctantly; sure she would wake up at any moment and throttle him. Finally, he was done, and backed from her bed with all haste when he was done stacking the armor at the base.

"So, what happened, Rusl?" Link asked almost immediately, lacking, as usual, any patience or courtesy.

"Well…" the older swordsman sighed and began his account.

He finished the tale just as his other companion, Shad, walked in.

"Why is Knil with Vaati and Ganondorf?" Link pondered aloud.

"Why indeed?" Lucius replied, looking slightly concerned by the news. "When last I checked, Knil was sealed in the mountains between Ikana Canyon and Snowhead,"

"It's quite possible that they released him from confinement," Shad added in.

"Well, it's of little consequence, as long as we obtain the jewels before they do," Kafei commented quietly. "They, after all, are likely the target of this group of villains,"

"Well, Rusl, we'll let you get some rest," Link said abruptly, heading for the door. "You have a long road ahead if you're freeing giants,"

"We need our rest, as well," Kafei agreed. "As we head to the swamp tomorrow,"

"Allow me to aid your healing before we go," Lucius requested, holding his staff aloft. "_O Goddess of Wisdom, heal mine allies of their wounds!_" Three streams of blue light flew from his staff, one at a time, and struck each of the teammates. Each one glowed blue after being struck and then their wounds were gone, along with some vigor restored. Ashei grunted a bit and rolled over in her sleep, having fallen asleep the moment she'd arrived. Team Link left after that and Rusl lie down to sleep as well.

"This news is troubling," Lucius commented as they headed next door to room 4. "Knil is released from confinement and is working with Ganondorf and Vaati again, even though the sages sealed Knil away after the incident at the Palace of Winds,"

"Who knows what it could mean," Kafei commented quietly. "Perhaps it's an omen of a black future or, just perhaps, it's something else that we cannot fathom at this moment," Link scratched the back of his head.

"Talking to you is hard work," the hero remarked. Kafei shrugged, smirked slightly for a couple of seconds, and then stopped as they opened room 4 with their room key.

"33 rupees," he held out his hand. "I'll take it to Anju,"

"Okay, you drive a hard bargain, what with the discounts and cheerful service," Link said jokingly, forking over three green rupees. "Uh, oh…Lucius, help a friend out,"

"Oh, you must need money if I'm suddenly being referred to as 'friend'," Lucius replied. He sometimes made jests with a relatively straight face, though not so much as Kafei, so this was one of those times where Link wasn't quite sure whether Lucius minded fishing out a red rupee and a yellow rupee or not.

"Good night to you two," Kafei took the money and headed downstairs.

"You do realize that I want my research funds refurbished at a later date," Lucius added to Link. Link gulped.

"Anju," Kafei approached the counter as she was locking the front door after flipping the sign to the 'closed' position.

"Yes, Kafei?" she turned with a smile.

"I brought Link's rent," he placed it on the counter and vaulted over it to note payment in the book.

"Oh, good…" she approached the counter. "But I do wonder why you said good night earlier? I was afraid you wouldn't come back down,"

"Simple…" he jumped back over the counter. "You can never say good night too much to the one you love," Corny, yes, but she didn't care at the moment. Taking her hand, he led them up to room 1, a.k.a, the Employees Only Room, a.k.a, Anju's Bedroom, now amended to Anju and Kafei's bedroom.

After locking the door behind them, they took turns changing in the bathroom (hey, they got to have some modesty when they don't want to see anything 'hot' at the moment, right?) and then headed to bed. Anju had a modest silk nightgown, an anniversary present from Kafei. Sure, you'd think that a husband wouldn't want his wife in a modest outfit, but they ran an inn. Besides, he thought she looked fine in it. Kafei, on the other hand, wore a rather elegant set of purple pajamas that complemented his hair perfectly. His mother, Madame Aroma, had given it to him on a previous birthday and he would rather not upset her by refusing to wear them (not to mention that he secretly found them very comfortable, though he only admitted it once to Anju). The bell tolled 08:00 outside.

"Ahh, these are moments that I live for," Kafei sighed as he snuggled next to his beloved Anju. She leaned on his strong chest and closed her eyes…and then something struck her.

"Kafei…we haven't fed the guests supper yet…" she said timidly.

Not a minute after the bells finished ringing, Mayor Dotour could've sworn he heard his son shout in outrage from another location in East Clock Town.

**Dawn of the Second Day**

"I'm glad I wasn't around Kafei last night," Link commented as he shuddered at the horrible food that he was trying to choke down. "He sounded like he finally snapped," Lucius sighed, and poked at his food.

"If you ever get a woman you dearly love and wish to be with, you'll understand Kafei a little better," the mage noted. Link cocked his head, pausing in his hesitant eating.

"Huh? Did you have a girlfriend at some point, or something?" Link asked, showing, once again, his lack of tact.

"Just eat your food," Lucius replied, getting up and leaving the room.

"What's his problem?" Link asked nobody. He looked at his food. "And how am I supposed to eat this? The bacon's wet!"

Link came downstairs around 06:30 and saw Lucius and Kafei standing on opposite sides of the counter. Anju was behind the counter with Kafei.

"There our dolt is now," Kafei commented. Lucius turned, looking perfectly normal, rather than upset. He was holding a silver compass that seemed to have an ethereal glow about it.

"Link, I just finished tuning up this device," the mage handed it over.

"Great…" Link looked it over. "What is it, exactly? Besides a compass, I mean," Link was well familiar with Lucius's enchanted objects, but still never could figure out what they did at first glance.

"It's a Jewel Compass," Kafei said impatiently, obviously having already heard the explanation.

"You know that a normal compass points north, due to the magnetic pulls of the world's poles, right?" Lucius added. Link gave him a blank expression. Hey, he'd grown up in a Podunk farming town, cut him some slack. "At any rate, this compass points towards the strongest concentration of elemental energies in the area, I.e. the sacred jewels,"

"So this thing helps us find the sacred jewels," Link summarized. "Why couldn't you just say that? You always make things more complicated than necessary," Lucius sighed and casually thumped him on the head with his staff. "Ow! What was that for?"

"For being an idiot," Kafei replied snidely.

After this little episode, they headed outside and towards the south part of town, unheeding of the threat lurking in the nearby café, but it wasn't important at that moment, so let's move on.

"Let's see, the compass…is…pointing…" Link turned at several angles, trying to read the needle.

"South," Kafei finished dryly, looking over his shoulder and narrowly avoiding being hit by Link's shoulder.

"I knew that!" Link exclaimed quickly. "Now, let's go!"

"Sure you did…" the thief rolled his eyes. How this guy saved any land was a mystery sometimes…

"You're heading to the Southern Swamp?" the guard asked as the party halted at the gate. Dong! 07:00. "I suppose you know your business, being a hero and all, but it's been poisoned lately. Be careful out there,"

"Thank you for the warning," Lucius said courteously, as the trio walked through the gate.

As they set foot in Termina Field, Link piped up immediately.

"The swamp's poisoned again?" he said. "Lucius, do you think that the curse has returned?"

"Who knows anything?" Lucius replied calmly. "Let's just focus on getting the jewels, then we can worry about curses,"

"Curses are bad omens," Kafei noted darkly. "Leave it, and you could regret it,"

"Don't say stuff like that!" Link replied, his smile reducing a bit for a moment.

They walked a short way down the stairs and then down the pillar-lined path. As soon as they reached the area where the grass turned a deeper green, two green Chuchus jumped out of the grass at them.

"I'll handle this!" Link declared, pulling out his Gilded Sword and Mirror Shield. He blocked the charge of one of the foes with his shield and then counter-stabbed it. The blade did little more than annoy it. Link swatted at it a few more times, only to be tackled by the other one.

"Sure you don't need help?" Kafei called mockingly; slightly amused by the pain Link was in.

"Nope!" Link rolled away and fired a fireball at the Chuchu that had tackled him, reducing it to smoldering goop. The other came hopping towards him and suffered the same fate. "I'm good!" he did a silly pose with his fist in the air and standing on one leg.

"Good, now let's get going," Kafei muttered, passing him with Lucius and smacking him with an outstretched hand and forward momentum.

"Hey!" Link objected.

They soon reached the Road to Southern Swamp as the clock tolled 07:30. A couple more Chuchus accosted them, but Lucius incinerated them easily enough before they could even bother the party.

"I could've taken them!" Link pouted overdramatically. Lucius forced himself not to laugh at the antics. Kafei, predictably, was very disapproving and wanting to hurt something brutally. Fortunately, the Evil Bats in the nearby tree came out and started hounding Link all at once. "Ahh! A little help?" he shouted, running around, swinging his sword wildly, as Kafei tried not to laugh. Lucius came forward and blew the bats away with an upsurge of cutting air. Unfortunately, it hit Link too, and he wasn't too happy to suddenly have a gash across his face.

"Sorry, but you _did_ say to do something," Lucius said apologetically as he cast Restore to fix his companion's wounds.

"Don't let it happen again," Link mock-warned, doing a Kafei impression with his face. The thief, fortunately, didn't make the connection, and they continued on.

"Ahh, there's the camera shop and tour center!" Link pointed at the stilt house ahead as they entered the actual swamp.

"Ahh, there's the scent of wet compost and dead creatures!" Kafei mocked with the same tone. Link didn't catch the concealed insult. Lucius put a hand to his forehead.

_Goddesses, give me strength… _his usual mantra for the day. Often he repeated it in his head, or when casting spells, but it was usually the former more than the latter.

The trio continued into the shop, and was greeted by the camera contest guy.

"Hey, Link! Get any good shots lately?" he asked.

"Nope, sorry," Link replied apologetically. "I'm on a mission right now,"

"Okay, maybe another time," the guy nodded, going back to tuning a pictobox (camera).

"Hey!" the old hag in the tour booth called. "You're the nice young man that helped me out in the woods a while back," The bells tolled 08:00 in the background.

"Yeah, how are you, Koume?" Link replied, putting on his hero act. Lucius was about to mention how Link had also foiled Koume and Kotake at the Spirit Temple, one time, but decided to not bring that up. "Seen any jewels lately?" The hag looked side-to-side.

"What makes you think I'd know about jewels?" she asked evasively. Kafei gave her a 'you're kidding' look, as did Lucius. "Okay, okay, let me think…hmm…if I know anything about sacred jewels, they often lurk near temples,"

"That much is obvious," Kafei said bluntly. "This entire stinking swamp is near the temple,"

"Don't rush me, young man!" Koume snapped. "Now, the temple is in the giant tree in the middle of the swamp, so try there,"

"It'll take all day to get up there!" Link whined. Lucius put a hand to his chin.

"Well…mayhap I can manage something," he turned and headed out the door. Link and Kafei looked at each other and followed.

"Oh, sure! No 'thanks for the info, Koume' or 'oh, Koume, you have been so helpful'!" the hag yelled after them. "Ingrate youngsters!"

"Lucius," Link said as he followed him around to the back of the building, narrowly missing the Deku Scrub that lived here.

"Watch it!" the Scrub yelled as Kafei jumped over him.

"Don't tell me you're gonna try that warping spell again," Link continued. Lucius looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that a problem?" he asked.

"Well, last time we tried to warp to Lake Hylia, we ended up in the middle of the desert and sans arms or legs or some combination of the two," Kafei stated frankly.

"I've had practice since then," Lucius reassured them in his soothing tones. "Have a little faith," Kafei muttered something incomprehensible as Lucius raised his staff; against Link's objections, and they disappeared in a flash.

They reappeared on the cliff above, right in front of the entrance to Woodfall, a.k.a. where the temple was. Link fell on his butt immediately, gasping and holding his chest.

"Am I still alive?" he gasped. He frowned at Lucius. "At least let someone brace themselves before doing that!"

"My apologies," Lucius replied. "Now, shall we proceed into Woodfall?"

"Why not?" Kafei said, hiding his shock from the instant transit. "I've already had a near-death experience today,"

"Why do you two always doubt me?" Lucius asked as they headed into Woodfall.

"Maybe because your spells always end up getting us too?" Link suggested. He received a disciplinary bonk.

"Let's see, now…" Lucius took the jewel compass and examined it carefully. "Hmm…it's not even in here, it seems…"

"What?" Kafei was none to happy. "Why didn't you check before that blasted warping incident?" Link grabbed the compass.

"It looks like the jewel is south of here…I think…" he informed the others. "The red part of the needle is pointing at the S,"

"Okay, let's go, the air here is burning out my lungs," Kafei led them back out to the stinky, but less polluted, area around the Deku Palace.

"If the jewel is south of here, it's likely at the Deku Palace," Lucius deduced. "Link," he turned to the green-clad hero. "You'll need your Deku Mask here,"

"Aww, I hate wearing this thing," he replied, looking at the mask in his hands. With a sigh of resignation, he put it on his face. It fused with him immediately and he let out an anguished scream, as he became a Deku in a flash of light. "Now, what?" he asked in the squeaky voice of this form.

"We'll need to fly to the ledge that leads to the Deku Palace," Lucius responded. Link looked very shocked and unhappy.

"Are you nuts? You two will break my body in half!" he objected.

"Don't worry, I can help," Lucius held his staff aloft and cried some arcane words. Link started to glow with a mystical blue aura and the wind around them picked up.

"Oh, I see," Kafei deduced, though not happy about the prospect of flight by Deku. "The wind will let him go further and Nayru's Love will keep him from breaking from our weight,"

"Right," Lucius replied. Link grumbled and went over to burrow into a Deku Flower. He burst out a second later with two flower helicopters. Lucius grabbed onto his stubby legs and Kafei grabbed Lucius's legs. They were, then, off for the cliff, and all without an explanation of why they didn't just go through the main gate.

One painful flight later, they arrived on the ledge that led to the Deku Palace.

"Why did we have to fly over here?" Link panted on the ground, now back to normal. "The gate was wide open!"

"Element of surprise," Lucius explained. "Don't want the villains to spot us if they're here,"

"What if they come this way?" Kafei asked. Lucius considered that for a moment.

"Then this was a waste of effort," he replied casually. Kafei resisted the urge to smack his forehead or Link. "At any rate," he perused the compass again. "The jewel is close by," They were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a whirlwind nearby, followed by the sound of rending wood and of Dekus' screams, fading into the distance.

"You don't think…" Link looked at the other two.

"One way to find out," Kafei pulled Link up off the ground and shoved him forward to investigate. Lucius hurried past, however, electing to see for himself.

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**Oh, no, yet another cliffhanger! Of course, anyone that's read Team Shadows's story knows what' coming...(mwa, ha, ha). Remember, review, vote, etc. Btw, you still gotta feel sorry for Kafei.**


	22. Team Link Level 3

**Yay! Team Shadows makes its first appearance in this story and the slugfest can begin! I own nothing!****

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Level 3

Lucius emerged high above ground level, looking at half of what used to be the Deku Palace. Suddenly, a green shine caught his eye and his gaze went downward to where a whirlwind held the waters of the swamp apart. In the midst of the whirlwind floated a greenish man, clad in black armor, wearing a tattered cape. His hair was red and the jewel upon his forehead was yellow, Lucius immediately recognized him, as well as the shimmering jewel in his hand. With a swipe of his staff, he sent a fireball, at the villain. He was engulfed by a fiery explosion on impact and the green jewel went flying out of his hand as he reeled a little. It landed somewhere in the ruins of the palace.

"You're not getting your hands on the jewels this time, Ganondorf!" Lucius declared, sounding suddenly wise and fierce, not at all his usual demeanor. The whirlwind died as Ganondorf's two companions spun to look at Lucius in surprise. Lucius looked at them, what his team had uncovered, proved. "Vaati…and Knil too!"

"Oh, great, he has backup this time," Link added in his usual cocky way that he had in battle or during any type of challenge, really; running up with his sword in his left hand and his shield in his right.

"No matter the odds, light will never lose to darkness," Kafei came dramatically with his twin knives in hand, their holsters on his belt, empty. _Of course, this only pertains to the war, not the battle._ He thought ruefully.

"Link!" Ganondorf shouted, brandishing a fist. "I won't be defeated again!"

"That's what you said the last 20 times!" Link retorted with a maddening smile of superiority, causing his nemesis to growl in frustration.

"Regardless of how powerful you think you are, we will still take the day and this stone," Knil challenged in his soft, menacing voice.

"Knil? How did you get out?" Link asked, surprised still at this turn of events.

"Isn't it obvious? They broke his seal and now they're looking for the jewels," Lucius deduced. Unexpectedly, an explosion engulfed the ledge they were standing on and they were hidden behind a veil of smoke and dust, but they quickly jumped free and Lucius rained several fire spells down on Ganondorf in retaliation. The Gerudo King flew back quickly to avoid them as Vaati fired several wind spells at Kafei, who was running at him deftly and sidestepping every spell.

Link attempted a downward thrust on Knil but he fired a blast of magic at his face and sent him flying head-over-heels through the air. He managed to use his shield to lessen his impact with the wall, but it was painful for his arm.

Kafei quickly flipped over Vaati at this point and kicked him in the back of the head, sending him reeling forward, before attacking Knil in a flurry of slashes and stabs. Knil blocked and dodged most of them, only suffering a few minor cuts and nicks before performing a pivoting leap over the thief's head and performing a downward cut that Kafei only managed to dodge enough for it to just leave a painful cut down one side of his back, rather than a potentially lethal one. The thief spat in annoyance as he spun to face Knil again.

Ganondorf, meanwhile, was trading spells with Lucius in the ruins of the Deku Palace. Fire and Ice exploded in midair and darkness and light burst parts of the scenery asunder as their deadly dance continued.

"Black Hole!" Ganondorf split the attack into six blasts for increased accuracy as he launched it at Lucius.

"Divine Lightning!" Lucius raised his staff and the lightning of judgment came crashing down from the heavens, cutting through Ganondorf's spell and destroying the rest of the palace on impact. Lucius peered through the smoke and saw no signs of movement.

Knil rolled around Kafei's swift attack and grabbed him by the leg, swinging him around 720 degrees before hurling him at Lucius as he looked to see if Ganondorf had survived the divine lightning. Both the mage and thief went flying into the swamp with an unpleasant splat. Luckily, it was the relatively dry land that sat where the outside entrance to the palace gardens used to be.

Vaati chuckled as Link tried to hit him, but the wind mage was at home in the air and Link's jumping spin attacks just weren't accurate enough. Finally, the hero jumped back and sprang off of a wall, Vaati put up an air shield as saw the attack rushing at him, but Link was one step ahead, smashing the shield with his own shield before cutting through Vaati and landing behind him. The wind mage collapsed in a heap.

"Looks like it's you and me, huh, Knil?" Link said cockily.

"Humph, don't count your cuccos yet, green boy," Knil scoffed, taking his blade in hands.

The two started off with standard fierce swings of their swords. Link held an advantage in the field of blocking, having a shield, but Knil attacked a lot faster. The two fenced in circles as neither could break the other's guard. Knil flipped backwards and fired a salvo of energy blasts at his opponent, who just blocked them with his mirror shield and rushed forward in an aggressive assault. Knil walked slowly backwards as he deflected the harsh blows.

"What's wrong, Knil? Can't keep up?" Link taunted as Knil was backed to the edge of the dry land. He gave an evil grin. Before Link could figure out what he was on about, the alter ego's body glowed silver and a large explosion sent him smashing into the nearby rock face. He slid down into a sitting position and rubbed his head with a grimace. "What the heck was that?" The dust cleared and Knil was still standing, a little scuffed-looking but, otherwise, fine. Link got back to his feet. "Not a bad trick, but its time to end this!" They were interrupted by someone bursting out of the rubble of the palace, holding aloft the shining, green stone.

"I have it!" Ganondorf announced. "Now," he looked at Link. "You will know defeat!" Link glanced over to where his comrades were lying in the mud.

_Oh, crud…this just isn't my day! _He thought bitterly. "You guys got the drop on us, today, but we'll catch up!" Quickly donning the Bunny Hood, he ran and jumped over to his comrades and hurriedly scooped them up before jumping back up to the ledge they'd appeared on earlier and passing out of sight.

"That's right! Run, Hero! Run!" Ganondorf's gloating shouts echoed after the hero as Link set the other two down on one of the giant flowers that grew in the area near the Woodfall entrance and the Deku Palace entrance.

"Man, this sucks…" Link fished out the red potions from his bag, only to find that they were smashed. "Oh, no! How did this…happen…?"

"_Don't worry, Lucius, I know what I'm doing," Link waved his hand at the mage as he crammed the potion vials into the satchel all willy-nilly._

"_Link, they won't be properly insulated if you don't-" Lucius tried to warn._

"_There! Let's go, Lucius!" the hero tied the bag to his belt and headed out the door. Lucius shook his head with a sigh and followed._

"Why don't I ever listen?" Link asked the comatose mage. "Oh, well. Right now I need to hide you guys before Ganondork and his flunkies find us," He took out the Deku mask and sighed, looking at its shocked visage. "I hate this mask,"

It was 12:00 by the time a struggling Deku Link managed to land in the Woods of Mystery with his two-person quarry. He collapsed on the ground with a pitiful squeak after setting down. The extended period of unassisted flight had taken a toll on him.

The bells tolling 17:30 awakened link, or so he assumed that was the time, as he slowly opened his eyes to the light of dusk. He pulled off the Deku mask before sitting up, as his Deku form had a giant head that made it impossible to sit up or stand properly, for that matter.

"How long was I out for?" he looked over at Kafei and Lucius. "Still out, huh? Guess that Knil a number on you two in the blunt impact division," He stood, ignoring the protests from his joints and head. "I'll go get some potions, wait here," He chuckled a little to himself at the lame joke as he sought his way out of the woods. Luckily, the Mask of Truth allowed him to find his way through the illusions a lot easier than most people could.

Link arrived on the edge of the woods in time to see three familiar figures near the potion shop. The hero quickly ducked behind a tree. Ganondorf, carrying Vaati, floated up to the shop and Knil sprang nimbly up the ladder.

_I must've really done a number on the guy if Team Shadows is having to get medicine._ Link allowed himself a little smile of pride, but quickly let it slip. _But, if they're in there, how in the name of the Goddesses will I be able to get any medicine?_

Link stayed concealed for several tense minutes as the sun grew closer to the western horizon. Finally, the villains reemerged, talking amongst themselves. Vaati, Link was unhappy to see, was perfectly fine now. _Great, now all three are in fighting shape._ They proceeded down to the ground, but then a wolf howled in the distance. The bells tolled 18:00, and Link cursed.

**Night of the Second Day**

It didn't look like Ganondorf was too happy about it either, if his expression from a distance was any indication. Link slipped from the trees as they set up camp and a small fire in the fading light and scaled the ladder in record time.

He almost bowled poor old Kotake over as he came in the door. Apparently, she had been about to flip the sign.

"Ah, a last-second customer!" she cackled, floating back to the counter. "Well, make it quick, I need my beauty sleep,"

"I need something to heal my friends," Link said quickly.

"Well, red potion will get them going, but blue would fix them up," Kotake shrugged. "Pick your choice," Link looked in his wallet at the chump change that his party had picked up that day.

"How about two of the red?" Link looked up at the hag with his most innocent expression.

"Hey! I recognize you!" she cackled again. "You're the one that saved Koume from the Woods of Mystery, a long while back!" She poured two vials of red potion. "Here, 30 rupees for both," Link pulled out a five blue rupees and five green rupees and placed them on the counter. Ching! She put them in her old-fashioned cash register. Link took the potions, stowing them carefully in the right spot, this time.

"Thanks, Kotake!" he waved and ran out. Jumping down from the platform the shop sat on and running back into the woods.

The woods were dark, but Link managed to find his way back with the Mask of Truth and a brand that he had lit with Din's Fire. Ignoring the creepy cricket noises, among other sounds that were scarier, Link, knelt down and pulled Kafei's mouth open.

Link chuckled to himself as he administered the medicine in a way that would've got him hit if the thief was conscious, aka, acting like it was a baby's spoon that was flying the medicine in for landing. The thief started to stir as Link put him down and went over to Lucius, administering the magic medicine in a less degrading way to his more-respected companion. Well, it wasn't that Link didn't respect Kafei; he just liked to get on his nerves, even if it got him hurt (which happened roughly 60-70% of the time).

"Where in blazes am I?" Kafei asked moodily, sitting up. "I'd better not be in the dark woods at this time of night,"

"You're not," Link replied sarcastically. "This is a new room at the inn," Kafei, somehow, managed to thump a small rock off of his head. "Ow!"

"I see you two are as nice to each other as always," Lucius commented calmly as he sat up. "But, Link, why are we here?"

"The last place the villains'd look, I figured," he shrugged.

"Well, we'll need a campfire if we're staying here," Lucius held up his staff and it emitted a pale light that was only wide enough to encompass the party.

"No way, I refuse to stay in a dingy refuge of wayward foliage in the midst of nightfall in a filthy, compost-ridden swamp!" Kafei snapped, a vein pulsing in his temple.

"Well, if you want to navigate the swamp at night, go right ahead," Lucius replied calmly. "However, I would rather stay here and not drown or something worse," Kafei muttered something malevolent and went to help Link as he gathered firewood from the immediate vicinity. Surprisingly, the trees dropped quite a few branches. The bell tolled 19:00 as Lucius started the pile of sticks burning. "Here, we need to eat after this long day," Lucius handed out a couple of pieces of jerky and split a small loaf of bread amongst them.

_More like need a nice bottle or three of Chateau Romani…_Kafei thought, casting annoyed glance at Link, who was eating a bit too voraciously, and then at the concealed sky.

"All right, I'm going to put up a barrier to repel intruders," Lucius informed them after the food was gone. "You can go ahead and pick a spot to sleep," Kafei looked unfavorably at the forest floor, but Link just flopped down where he was, completely unfazed. The thief sighed; perhaps he did spend too much time in the city. But, he reasoned, that was where Anju was, so that's where he wanted to be. A large, glowing diamond-shaped prism appeared around the campsite momentarily as Lucius finished his incantation, but it soon turned invisible, leaving only four Nayru emblems in a quadrangular shape to indicate that it was there. With a sigh, Kafei rolled over on the ground, resting his head on his arm, and tried to get some sleep.

**Dawn of the Third Day**

The usual rooster crow and six tolls of the bell roused the trio the next day. Link was still a little sore from the previous day, as were the other two, as the medicine hadn't healed them completely, just enough to move. Anyway, they all rose, creaky joints notwithstanding, and Lucius doled out more rations for breakfast.

"Well, at least it's better than what we usually have," Link mentioned as he chewed on some jerky. He paused mid-chew when he realized what he'd implied. Sure enough, his person was smashed through a tree, three seconds later, and Lucius deactivated the barrier after making sure the fire was out.

"Okay, I believe that we can reach Termina Field if we head through here to the northwest," Lucius reasoned. "Link, we'll need the Mask of Truth for this,"

"Coming, Mommy…" Link mumbled, dazed from a random encounter with a tree. It had nothing to do with Kafei, no sir, that foot had randomly hit him from nowhere, right? Lucius sighed and cast Restore on him. Once the blue light faded, the green-clad hero got up and pulled out the aforementioned mask. "Okay, everyone, after Link!" he charged off into the woods. Kafei sighed as they heard several cries of the local turtle monsters that had spikes that shot out of their shells when they charged. They were called Snappers.

"Why is he the leader, again?" Kafei inquired Lucius.

"He pulled out the Master Sword?" Lucius suggested before clearing his throat. "He's not all that bad," They heard a hammed up scream. "Let's go help,"

They managed to make it back to Termina Field around 09:30. Link, covered in cuts and bruises from the Snapper attacks.

"We're here!" the hero announced as a thief with a frayed outfit and slightly mussed hair came out of the woods behind him. Lucius had sustained a blow to the stomach, but nothing a little magic couldn't fix.

"It's about time!" Kafei spat. "I'm sick of these blasted detours,"

"Now, now," Lucius healed the party, yet again. "We have about an hour to rest in Clock Town, but we need to hurry to the next jewel,"

"Right…" Link agreed. "Well, to town it is!" He dashed off, easily dispatching the green Chuchus that got in his way.

"Sometimes I wonder if he acts incompetent on purpose," Kafei murmured as he and Lucius followed.

"I've known him longer than you and, in light of that, I can tell you that you're probably right," the mage replied.

They walked through the South Gates at 10:00. Hurrying over to the inn, they quickly washed up and fixed their clothes. Kafei was happy to get a few minutes with Anju, though he had to comfort her because he was better at sewing than her. Some corny lines and a kiss later, Team Link was ready for action again, after eating some of Anju's horrible cooking.

"I don't care what you say, Kafei is gifted to be able to choke that stuff down and pretend it's good," Link commented to Lucius as they stood outside the inn, waiting for Kafei.

"Don't let him hear you say that," Lucius warned. Speak of the devil. Kafei came out the door a second after they stopped talking. Link jumped and let out a cry of 'oh, crap!'.

"Did I miss something stupid?" the thief raised a purple eyebrow.

"Yes, but don't worry," Lucius informed him. "Well, let's be getting to the west gate," He nudged Link towards the nearby opening that led to South Clock Town.

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**The next chapter will be a load of fun, as I'll have to analyze vauge maps and three other team stories to get it right. Fun stuff! Remember to review and vote of favorite team and yadda, yadda...you know the routine.**


	23. Team Link Level 4

**I've discovered a majorly bad mistake in the second night. In Team Eye's story, Kafei is at the inn, but, in Team Link's story, he's in the woods. I think I fixed it in a crappy way, but I really wanted Kafei to be there to stand up to Mutoh. Oh, well. I still own nothing!****

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Level 4

Da-Dong! It was 11:30 as they departed from the inn and headed into South Clock Town.

"I can never get used to that bell," Link whined, holding his head after the loud chime of the large bell.

"That's because you're not native," Kafei replied shortly.

"C'mon, Lucius, back me up!" Link tried to appeal to his long-time ally. Lucius decided not to reply, lest he get pulled into an argument, and hurried on ahead.

"So, you're heading to the Great Bay?" the guard asked at the gate.

"Why do you guys always ask us if we're going somewhere when we're at the gate, wanting out?" Link asked curiously. "Is it in the guard code or are you just starving for attention?" The guard looked surprised.

"Well, a little of Column A and Column B, really," he admitted sheepishly. Quickly, readopting his official façade, he continued. "Anyway, there are pollution problems and whatnot at the shore, as of late. Be careful out there," He allowed them past. The bell rang 12:00 as they set foot in Termina Field, once again.

"I have to wonder if all of the regions are suffering problems again," Lucius pondered aloud.

"Do you think the guardians have returned?" Kafei asked, looking more glum at the thought.

"Who knows?" Lucius shrugged as they headed down the ramp that led to the sandy area below.

"We'll clear out any monsters later!" Link declared dramatically, holding his sword up in a heroic pose. "With the jewels, nothing will stop us!" He was promptly bowled over by a Leever. "Ow…"

"We should probably hurry along," Lucius suggested calmly as many more Leevers began to burrow out of the sand. Kafei whipped out his knives and carved several enemies out of his way with deft strikes as Link performed a spin attack at the ones swarming him.

"_Ruby flames of power, arise and incinerate mine enemies to ashes!_" Lucius thrust his staff towards the Leevers. "Ruby Fire!" A wave of fire poured forth and burned a path through the enemies, prompting the party to make a break for it. They skirted around the wall in the middle of the path, hearing a satisfying thump or two as a couple of Leevers smashed into the obstacle. Once around the wall, they dashed with difficulty (blame the sand), through the gap in the two walls and made it out of Termina Field.

Nearly smashing into the gate, they slid to a stop.

"Well, that was fun," Kafei said flatly, highlighting his words with sarcasm.

"Aside from the sandpaper feeling of being hit by a Leever, yeah," Link replied, missing the sarcasm. Kafei rolled his eyes and proceeded to spring nimbly over the spiked fence. After the other two had managed to scale the obstruction, the trio continued on to the beach.

"Oh, great, more Leevers," Link complained as, sure enough, more of the annoying enemies came out of the sand and rushed them. Lucius unleashed a volley of light bolts at the enemies, blowing them apart and creating a path through.

"Into the water!" Lucius declared. "They won't follow!"

"What?" Kafei objected. "We'll freeze and get drenched in seawater!"

"Bonzai!" Link had already dived in and was heading for the Marine Research Lab.

"Ruby Fire!" Lucius blew away more Leevers. "Get going, Kafei!"

"Fine, fine…" he ran at the ocean and dived in, disliking the sting of the salt, and followed Link to the lab. Lucius ran after them and dove in too, somehow swimming in his robe, although it was filled, immediately, with water and weighed him down.

They were soon sputtering and shivering on the small platform that held an owl statue and the ladder up to the lab. Da-Dong! 12:30.

"Nice plan," Kafei muttered darkly. "Now what? A suicide dive off a cliff?" Lucius raised his staff and a ring of fire swirled around them momentarily, drying and warming them.

"No," the mage said with a slightly annoyed expression, but still sounding calm.

"Oh, I know! We're heading to the Gerudo Fortress!" Link interjected. Lucius's eyebrows raised a little.

"How did you know?" he asked, surprised. Link, too, was startled.

"Lucky guess?" he responded.

"Don't tell me the jewel is there…" Kafei moaned, a hand to his forehead. Lucius held out the jewel compass.

"See for yourself," he said. Sure enough, the needle was pointing north to northeast, in the exact direction of the Gerudo Pirate Fortress. Kafei sighed as Lucius put the compass away.

"I had hoped to avoid having to infiltrate that place again," the thief lamented. "But it can't be helped, I suppose. What's our itinerary for infiltration?"

"Well, we could always take the same route as before," Link suggested. "I doubt that security is any less tight now than before,"

"So, underwater, then…" Kafei muttered, looking at the water contemplatively. "Wonderful…" Link donned the Zora mask and, after a bout of screaming, he was Zora Link.

"I'll lead the way!" he said in his slightly distorted voice. "Lucius, can you do that thing you did last time?"

"Your lack of subtlety is amazing," Lucius sighed. "But, yes, I can," He reached in the bag and pulled out a green potion. "Link, where are the red potions, and what is this stain?" Link was shocked.

"Well, uh…you see, Lucius, there is a very good explanation here…" the hero took a glance at the water and began to step back towards it.

"You didn't pack them right and they broke, am I right?" Lucius said in a scolding tone.

"Well, uh…gotta go!" he dived into the water and took off like a fish. Lucius, sighed, chugged the potion, and raised his staff. Chanting some arcane words, he and Kafei were enveloped in a pale light and bubbles appeared around their heads.

"Let's go after him," the mage dived into the water, now unaffected by the chill.

"That dolt," Kafei grumbled, obviously pertaining to Link, and followed.

Eventually, they caught up to him. He'd been caught by a Like Like. Luckily, his Zora form had a few abilities equipped for this, and he soon utilized one of them. The Like Like exploded into slimy pieces as Zora Link had activated his electric barrier. As the electricity faded, he saw his companions coming and swam on, eventually coming to the underwater cliff-side. There were four sets of boards here, each bearing a red Jolly Roger. One blocked the secret way into the cove outside the fortress, the other four were decoys. Unfortunately, for the life of him, he couldn't remember which was the right one.

"What are you doing?" Kafei asked as he and Lucius stopped in mid-water next to him.

"Which one leads in again?" Zora Link asked, scratching the back of his head.

"You mean you don't remember?" Lucius asked. "Well, if I recall, it's the second from the left," Zora Link built up momentum and flowed through the water at high speed, his pointed fingers jutted out in front, along with his arms, and he headed through the boards like a penetrating torpedo. Unfortunately, he kept going and hit the stone ramp inside.

"Ow!" they heard his yelp from inside. "I'm okay!" His allies followed quickly.

"Keep your voice down, dolt! The Gerudo will hear us!" Kafei hissed. Link was about to retort, but Lucius put a hand to his mouth and gave him a warning look.

So, together, they crawled slowly up until they could see the circling patrol boats without being spotted.

"It looks like there's still four," Lucius whispered. "If we're careful, we should be able to make it to the secret passage without being spotted,"

"I'd vote for creating a diversion, anyway," Kafei replied, also in a whisper. "If they're busy, we can sneak in more easily," Lucius nodded and aimed his staff at the other side of the cove. Muttering a few words, he made a sphere of energy fly discreetly into the water and fly over to the boat that was passing by. It promptly sank, leaving the other three boats to go check it out.

"Let's go," Link dived into the water and swam through the open underwater gate that was nearby. His companions headed in after him.

They found themselves in an underwater corridor. Heading down it, they soon to a fence with another Jolly Roger board over it. Zora Link easily smashed it and they proceeded to see two fences set up in a cross formation. The path ahead was easily visible, but there were blocks blocking it.

"Link, go through those boards and move that other block out of the way," Lucius pointed at the round-about path to the far block.

"Why always me? Why can't Kafei go?" Link whined, going to do it anyway. Kafei proceeded to push the other block out of the way, although it was bit hard to do while swimming. It wasn't long before Link had gotten through all the boards in a graceful feat of swimming, which no one saw, and moved the other block. "Did you see that? It was a perfect 10!" Link said proudly as he returned to the others.

"See what?" Kafei asked bluntly. Link looked hurt and pouted as he lead the way ahead.

Up ahead was a dead end with an underwater vent of disputable function. They rode it up and came to a narrow corridor that held three large, spike mines. The mines were chained in place, and, normally they would just swim over them, as the mines were submerged. Regrettably, the Gerudo had thought of that, and positioned some sort of underwater exhaust vent to prevent them from doing just that. Link had found out, the hard way, that said vent threw one back out front if you got caught by it, so they decided that they'd better maneuver around the mines. Of course, Zora Link had the easiest time of all, as Zoras, apparently, could walk underwater, unimpeded, Lucius and Kafei, unfortunately, had to swim with as much agility as they could muster. Da-Dong! The clock tolled 13:00.

After a couple of close calls, they surfaced and came to a door with an anchor emblazoned on it.

"Glad that's over," Link commented as they headed through the door…only to find more mines, more water and a couple of platforms, one upstairs, one down. "Or not,"

"Did you really think that it was?" Kafei asked with disdain and raised eyebrows.

"More like I hoped," Link replied. They continued into the room, dodging the mines, and climbed the ramp up to dry stone again.

"Now why is this cage here?" Lucius muttered. There was an empty box inside.

"It was probably for guarding what was in the box, now can we find a way to open the gate, so that we can continue?" Kafei said impatiently, pointing at the iron gate to their right.

"How about that?" Link pointed at the crystal switch above. Lucius shot a fireball at it and the resulting explosion on impact caused the crystal to turn yellow and the gate to open. They got back in the water and swam through, right before it closed again.

"Great, more mines," Kafei commented. This time, the chains holding the mines were longer, so that said mines floated on the surface. The exhaust vent was underwater this time, meaning, once again, that they would have to maneuver between mines.

"At least they're on the surface this time," Lucius tried to console him. "Come on,"

After getting past the mines, they came to a wooden ladder that, remarkably, hadn't rotted in this moist environment. Scaling it, they came to a rather peculiar room. "If I recall correctly, we must press that switch on the floor," he pointed to the floor switch. "to open that grate," he pointed to the large, rectangular grate on the wall. "and allow us to strike the crystal and activate this geyser," he pointed at the round grate on the floor. Da-Dong! 13:30.

"Okay, you two get on the grate," Kafei went over to the switch. Link and Lucius did so. "Okay, get ready," He pressed the switch with his foot and, immediately, the grate over the crystal retreated. Lucius raised his staff as Kafei sprang over to stand with them.

One fireball later, the geyser carried them up to the room above. They stepped off and looked around. The door nearby was barred, but the bars suddenly slid up and the door flew open to reveal several angry Gerudo guards.

"There they are!" one shouted as the women attacked them.

"We've been detected!" Lucius shouted, stopping a spear with a magic shield while Kafei flipped over another guard and incapacitated her with a well-aimed kick to the head. Link deflected the thrust of the third guard's spear with is mirror shield and took her down with a debilitating slice. Lucius shot a blast of wind at the third guard as she reeled from hitting his shield. She smashed into a wall and fainted.

"There must have been an alarm in the waterways," Kafei deduced as the clock tolled 14:00.

"No matter, we'll just have to fight our way in," Lucius said resignedly. "Let's go,"

They headed out to the outside path that led over to the postern gate, which led right into the courtyard.

"Over there!" another guard shouted from below, on her patrol boat. Lucius shot a light bolt at her and sank the vessel, leaving her to flounder.

"As much as I enjoy having women throw spears at my head," Link commented, ducking a spear as they ran. "This is a bit much," Kafei resisted the urge to slap him in the head.

They stopped inside the postern gate, glancing at the heightened alert in the courtyard.

"We'll have to be careful," Lucius whispered as Link took off the Zora mask.

"No, duh," Kafei hissed.

"Link, the Stone Mask will be handy here," Lucius whispered to the hero. "Oh, yeah, I'd forgotten about it," Link scratched the back of his head. Kafei smacked him. "Ow! What was that for?"

"For being an idiot," Kafei replied nonchalantly. "Now put on that mask and let's go,"

"The jewel is likely in Aveil's room, as she likes to keep all the best treasure near her," Lucius reminded them.

Link was invisible to most everyone with the Stone Mask on. The exceptions were master thieves like Kafei and those with keen eyes, such as Lucius. Link was able to knock out any guards without alerting them, on the way up to Aveil's room. Finally, they arrived a little after the bell tolled 14:30.

"This is it," Link said, taking off his mask. They headed inside.

"Hey, it's you guys!" Link exclaimed immediately as they all stopped in their tracks upon seeing Team Shadow in front of them, all crouched behind two large barrels. Their adversaries stood immediately.

"Link, you're late this time!" Ganondorf exclaimed, jerking his head back. Lucius followed his jerk and saw a fierce battle taking place at the other end of the room.

"Is that Romani?" the mage said, peering over to where Aveil could clearly be seen fighting off Team Lon.

"We must come to her aid," Kafei added, knives already drawn. "These villains will have to wait,"

"That's just fine with us. We don't have time for you, anyway," Knil said condescendingly.

The three villains jumped aside to avoid Talon's bulk as it smashed through the nearby barrels and hit the floor, as did Team Link.

Link, Lucius, and Kafei raced past Talon as he scrambled back to his feet and joined Team Lon's battle. Aveil stopped momentarily, as did Ingo and Romani, as they gave the newcomers a glance. Now outnumbered 6-to-1, one would think that Aveil would surrender or flee, but, in her haughty pride, she chose to keep fighting the odds.

"What are you doing here?" Link asked as Ingo threw his pitchfork at Aveil, but she gracefully jumped over it, performed several back-flips to dodge the salvo of light spells that Lucius fired at her, and kicked Ingo in the face, causing him to smash into a wall and lose consciousness.

"Can we discuss this later?" Kafei interjected. Link accepted this suggestion and rushed at Aveil, slicing and blocking fiercely as Romani ran over by Lucius and, together, they fired elemental spells and projectiles, respectively, in their attempt to snipe the Gerudo Leader. Nimble and deft, she managed to dodge every attack and still rain blows down on Link's shield. Kafei jumped in right about now, attacking as swiftly as she, forcing her to move even faster to fend off Link and the other thief. Talon then charged at her and decked her a good one through an opening in her guard, as she was in the middle of a combo, smashing her into a wall and sending the jewel flying right into Vaati's hand.

"We got it! Time to run!" Ganondorf declared as they ran out the door, ignoring their enemies' shouts of anger.

"Those are the bad guys!" Romani exclaimed. "We've gotta get 'em!"

"That's not a good idea right now," Kafei replied calmly. "This fortress will soon be active as an anthill," Lucius went over to check on Ingo.

"Besides, the guards will give them a run for their money," Link said, cocky, and flipped his nose. Ingo was surrounded by blue light as Lucius's healing spell worked and the farm hand soon jumped back up.

"Now," Lucius came over to the others as Ingo retrieved his implement. Bells and such were going off outside, but that wasn't their concern at the second. "Why on earth are you in the Gerudo Fortress, Romani?"

"Romani thought sis and Mally might be here…" the rancher girl replied sheepishly, looking at the ground and rubbing the toe of her shoe on the floor.

"I see…and you had a valid basis for this?" Kafei added in skeptically. So they quickly told their tale.

"Well, that's all well and good, but I think you should get back to the ranch," Link replied. "We're fixin' to have to fight our way outta here," Romani looked at him indignantly, but he and his team were already leaving. "See ya!" With that, they ran out.

"I feel kinda bad leaving her like that," Link commented as they got back outside.

"Feel sorry later!" Kafei snapped as several guards came running up, as well as a few Gerudo Swordswomen.

"_Gale of courage, blow from the sky and prove yourself anew! Farore's Gale!" _Lucius commanded, blowing several of the enemies away and inflicting a series of painful cuts in the process.

Jumping down to the courtyard, they headed for the main gate, which, apparently, had been demolished by Team Shadows.

"Whoa! Those villains don't mess around!" Link exclaimed in awe. Quickly having to notice and block a Gerudo Swordswoman's strike.

The bell rang 15:00, barely audible over the din coming from the fortress, as they dived into the water and swam back to the spot where they could escape back into the waters of Great Bay.

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**Remember to review and vote and you know what I'm gonna say by now. **


	24. Team Link Level 5

**This chapter has some Kafei angst and Kafei/Anju romance. Link is still a dork, but at least you get to see a little into his character beyond the clown. I still own nothing!****

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Level 5

The swim back was fairly uneventful. The Gerudo sent out a couple of patrol boats from the secondary gate of their cove, but, apparently, couldn't detect them underwater. Team Link slowly made their way back to the shore, cautious of the pursuit, and finally made it back around 15:40.

"Whew!" Link exclaimed, after removing the Zora mask. "I don't wanna do anything like that again,"

"As much as I hate to do so, I agree with you," Kafei replied flatly.

"Hey! Whadda ya mean by that, Kafei?" Link asked.

"Nothing that a simpleton like you needs to know," Kafei turned away and crossed his arms.

"Waah," Link pouted. Lucius rolled his eyes.

"Let's just get back to town, you two," he suggested calmly. "Our business here is concluded," Leevers decided to show up at this point.

"Okay, back to town it is!" Link agreed quickly, charging for the way back before they got too surrounded.

"Ah, Clock Town, sweet Clock Town!" Link said joyfully as they stepped through the western gate at the toll of 16:00. He stretched and yawned, before turning to the other two. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm heading back to the inn after our little day at the beach.

"That could hardly be called a 'day at the beach' by the standard definition…" Kafei shook his head as Link ran off.

"Don't squash his enthusiasm," Lucius put a hand on Kafei's shoulder. "It's all that keeps him going in times of trouble,"

"Whoo-hoo, a sale on bread!" Link's voice echoed over from somewhere.

"Although this, obviously, isn't one of them, for him…" Lucius finished with forced dignity. Kafei gave a humph and they set off after their chipper teammate.

"Home, sweet home, huh, Kafei?" Link announced as they entered the Stock Pot Inn at 16:30. Kafei walked by with closed eyes and held out a hand, soundly smacking the hero on the back of the head. "Ow! What did I do?"

"Kafei, you're back!" Anju exclaimed happily. Kafei vaulted the counter, as usual, too impatient to take the long way around any obstacle, much less a desk.

"Yes, my dear Anju, I am," he smiled, before turning to the others with a frown. "It'll be 33 rupees for the night,"

"Okay, lover boy," Link smirked. Dodging the nearest object, which happened to be a potted plant, Link walked up to the desk and forked over the glass.

"We should go up to the room, now," Lucius suggested, grabbing Link by the arm. "Weren't you tired?"

"Yeah, but that was before I had something to pick on Kafei about," Link protested as he was dragged from the room by the mage's firm hand. Kafei glared after him.

"Why does he like being mean to you?" Anju asked. Kafei shrugged.

"I guess he likes pain," he smiled and leaned down to kiss her.

"I hope someone does this to you when you find a girl," Lucius said darkly as he opened the door to their room and shoved the green-clad hero inside.

"Actually, the village kids used to pick on me all the time about Ilia," Link admitted.

"And how did it make you feel?" Lucius raised an eyebrow on his slightly annoyed-looking face.

"I laughed it off," Link shrugged, turning to look out the window. "It's not like it was ever serious between me and Ilia, anyway,"

"Regardless, you still miss her, though," Lucius suggested. Link remained silent for a moment.

"Okay, so I kinda do, but I also have a thing for Zelda, and that Hena that runs the fishing hole at Zora River is cute too," he sighed and drooped. "The only way I can keep from getting torn between them is to travel around,"

"So you're just running away from your problems," Lucius concluded.

"Hey, it's no different than what you did!" Link turned and pointed at the mage. "If it wasn't for me, you never would've fought Ganondorf and you never would've learned your master's ultimate spell!" Lucius looked nonplussed.

"This is true…" he admitted. "But I faced my problems, you haven't yet,"

"Well, saving a kingdom is easier than picking a girl and breaking the hearts of the rejects," Link muttered, flopping down on the bed. "Just leave me alone, Lucius," he turned over and put his hat on the bedside table.

"All right, we'll leave it at that," the mage conceded, lying down as well, removing the binding from the lower part of his hair. A nap couldn't hurt, right?

The bell tolled 17:00 as Kafei finished telling the story of his recent adventures, skewed, of course, by his opinions and point of view. Of course, he usually remained rather objective on these sort of things, but…

"Anju, I'd like nothing better than to stay here with you, but that buffoon needs me there to keep him alive," Kafei sighed and leaned over the dining table, which they were sitting at. The habit of talking in the kitchen had become so because Anju was often busy there when he needed to talk. This, of course, probably contributed to even crappier food on the plate, but I digress. "The question is, why do I feel the need to do so?" Anju came over and put her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. He closed his eyes at the feel of her face next to his.

"Because, honey…you're really his friend, right?" she whispered. Kafei pondered on this.

_They're…my friends? I _guess_ that's what they are._ "What are friends, anyway?" he said thoughtfully. "Are they just people you slog through the mud with? Are they just people who stick together through thick and thin, to the bitter end, without even knowing exactly why?" Anju nuzzled his cheek and stepped back.

"A friend is only what you make of them," she said softly. "Now I've got to fix some food for Mom before it's dinner time," Kafei nodded and walked to the doorway.

"I'm going to sit in our room for a while," he explained. "I'll be waiting for you,"

**Night of the Third Day**

Lucius was awoken by a light knock on the door. He sat up and looked at the clock on the wall. It was a smaller version of the one on the clock tower. Apparently, the red circle on the rotating outer ring was the 12/24, and the other, blue, rings were the 3/15, 6/18, and 9/21, respectively. There was a small panel on the decorative inside of the clock and it flipped to a sun or moon picture, depending on the time. Right now, it was on the moon side and the clock's needle was not far from the 6/18 circle. Lucius got up, wishing that the clocks in Termina had moved on to numerals and hands like Hyrule, and went over to the door.

"Is Lucius there?" a familiar voice asked through the door. The mage opened the portal to reveal the scholar, Shad.

"Yes, what is it, Shad?" Lucius asked mildly, blinking away the sleep in his eyes. Link sat up with a yawn and rubbed his eyes at the noise. One of his good qualities, I suppose, was his ability to wake up when there was true danger around.

"Ashei seems to have taken a bit of a blow to the head and I was hoping that you could take a look at her," the bookworm replied. Link pulled out the jewel compass and began to examine it, but he decided to interject at this point.

"I hope it's nothing too serious," Link said from the bed. "Can't do without Ashei,"

"I'll take a look at her," Lucius nodded, going out and closing the door as Shad led the way back to the room. She seemed semi-conscious, but still stared with half-open eyes at them as they walked in. Lucius walked regally over to the bedside and crouched, holding a glowing hand to her head and closing his auburn eyes. A silent minute passed before, he opened his eyes again. "She seems to have taken a mighty blow to the head, but it has been partially cured," He looked at Shad. "I assume that you gave her less than a full dose of medicine,"

"Yes," Shad answered. "We lacked in amount, alas I was forced to divide the dose,"

"That's all that kept her going this long, I'm sure," the mage muttered, standing and holding his staff over her. "_O Goddess of Wisdom, heal mine allies of their wounds!_" A blue light emanated from the staff and encompassed the archer, causing her to glow blue for a couple of seconds. Then it faded, and she drifted off to sleep.

"Will she be all right now?" Rusl inquired of the mage.

"If she sleeps until tomorrow morning, she should be fine," Lucius confirmed.

"My thanks for lending the time to give aid to us," Shad shook the mage's hand.

"You're very welcome," Lucius gave a small smile. "Good night," He opened the door, avoiding Anju and her tray with a polite "excuse me" and walking back to his room.

The bell rang 18:30 as Lucius reentered his and Link's room. The smell of food caught his nose as he shut the door.

"So how is she?" Link asked as he poked at the unfavorable-looking fried cucco and mashed potatoes.

"She'll be fine," Lucius replied, sitting down and beginning to eat with few qualms but a twitch in his cheek.

"That's good," Link took a bite of cucco and shuddered. "Seriously, how can Kafei eat this crap? How can the guests eat this crap?"

"I'm sure Anju tries her best," Lucius replied.

"Her best tastes like sap, the bad kind," Link grumbled. "I mean, there's good kinds of sap, like maple, that are good, but this is more like pine sap, or tar. Yeah, pine tar," Lucius calmly bonked him over the head with his staff. "Hey!"

"Desist with your debauchery and eat," the mage ordered. Link grumbled, rubbing his head, and tried some of the potatoes.

"Ugh! These taste like sawdust and water!" Bonk! Hit again, was he. It would be a long, painful dinner…

**Dawn of the Fourth Day**

Many bells rang that morning, not just the ones in the clock tower. Everyone was roused by the din, Team Link not least of all.

"What's that horrible racket?" Link grumbled, putting his pillow over his head.

"I think it's coming from South Clock Town," Lucius deduced, getting up and looking out the window. "Come on!" Link groaned in defeat and got up. Putting on his hat and other gear, he and Lucius hurried down to the lobby, where Kafei and Anju had been preparing to open the inn and were still.

"It's about time!" Kafei commented. "Anju and I were about to lock you in,"

"Lock us _inn_?" Link chuckled at his own lame joke. "You're terrible, _Café_," His laughter made him oblivious to the pulsing vein in the thief's temple and Lucius merely stepped calmly aside as Link took a blow to the face that sent him rolling across the lobby. He got up in time for Team Eye to come racing down the stairs.

"What's going on?" Rusl asked.

"We're about to find out," Link replied, rubbing his face.

The seven exited the inn and Anju locked up. Better safe than sorry, right? Running over to South Clock Town with the many other inhabitants, they finally came to a stop as they met the large crowd that was present. Guards stood at the crowd's perimeter and a makeshift podium had been erected in front of the clock tower. The chattering crowd wondered what was up. Link was no different.

"What's up?" he asked his companions.

"Viscen is making a speech," Kafei replied, pointing at the guard captain as he ascended to the podium.

"It must be of grave import if they have summoned the whole of the town to listen," Shad deduced.

"Shh!" Ashei kicked his shin, producing a hiss of pain. Team Link walked forwards a ways, using Kafei to make people move, so that they could hear better.

Everyone, including the many guards around the crowd's perimeter, looked raptly at the Captain. He cleared his throat and held a wooden cone to his mouth.

"As of today, no one may enter or leave Clock Town," he announced. There was a general murmur at this. "It seems," he continued. "That the monsters outside town are now not only more numerous and aggressive, but are spawning new, dark versions of themselves. The Town Guard is attempting to ascertain the cause; therefore we also place a curfew on the entire town. No one is to leave their houses unless necessary and they must be escorted by a guard while in the streets. Guards will patrol the streets in pairs, 24 hours a day, in shifts, from this point forward. That is all. Look to the postman for letters containing any further instruction," After this, Viscen left the podium and headed back to the mayor's office, and the crowd was dispersed and led off by the guards.

"Whoa, serious stuff," Link commented as the crowd dispersed.

"Indeed," Kafei nodded. "We won't be able to go in and out of town anymore," He looked very grave.

"Worried about Anju?" Lucius asked. Kafei looked at him and crossed his arms.

"That's a good part of it," the thief replied. "I'd rather not leave her here during a lockdown,"

"But, Kafei, we need you!" Link protested. "You're a part of the team!" Kafei gave him a shrewd look.

"The other part," Kafei continued, apparently giving his unspoken agreement to stay, for the moment. "is that we depend on this place for supplies and beds to sleep in,"

"That's true," Lucius agreed. "If we leave during a lockdown, assuming they'll even let us out, we won't be coming back until the lockdown is over,"

"By the way, Anju was taken back to the inn," Link pointed out. Kafei spun and, sure enough, she was gone.

"Blast! How could I let my curiosity get the better of me?" he dashed back to the inn. Link made to follow, but Lucius grabbed his shoulder and shook his head.

"Let's wait for him in North Clock Town," Lucius said, holding up the jewel compass. "The next jewel is in Snowhead," Link pouted.

"Okay, fair enough," So they set off past the clock tower and up the ramps to the passage to North Clock Town.

"When will you be back?" Anju asked as she arranged the food she was going to cook for breakfast.

"I'm not sure, the town is on lockdown," Kafei replied. "If we manage to talk our way out the gate, we won't be able to return until traffic is allowed again,"

"I see…" Anju muttered, looking at the food items pointedly.

"Anju…" he murmured, walking over and tilting her face towards his. "Just say the word and I'll stay here, with you," She smiled and shook her head, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

"No…I can't do that, Kafei…" she gently brushed his hand away and took it. "Link and Lucius will need you more than I will, in the days to come," She released his hand and stroked his troubled face. "The town guard will protect the town, the inn…you only need to worry about your friends,"

"Anju…" the thief muttered, looking at the floor. "I…I don't know if…"

"You never gave up, even when you were changed back to a child, robbed of the Sun mask, forced to hide out in the Curiosity Shop, endured hard thief training…all to get the mask back from Sakon so that we could do the pre-marriage ceremony properly…" she looked into his brown eyes. "Why would you hesitate now?" Sakon's name still brought a chill down his spine. He would never stop seeing the taunting smile of that man's face…and how he'd ended the smile for good…

"Anju…thank you," Kafei hugged her tight. "I'll come back…I swear on the Goddesses,"

"What's taking him so long?" Link tapped his foot impatiently.

"Give him time, he won't be seeing her for a while," Lucius said patiently, sitting on the ledge that led to the fairy fountain. The bell tolled 07:00 as Kafei finally walked up to them, looking resolved.

"It's about time!" Link exclaimed, tossing him some jerky. "So what's the plan for getting out the gate?"

"I'll do it," Kafei declared, wolfing down the jerky and approaching the guards.

"None may pass, not even you, Mr. Kafei," the guard informed them.

"We must go to Snowhead," Kafei replied. "It is a matter of utmost importance. Either stand down, or face my wrath," The guards looked at each other, then at the formidable-looking adventurers and shrugged.

"Okay, but we can't let you back in, sir," the guard warned. They tugged the gate open a crack, large enough for someone to slip through. "Get through, quick, before the Captain comes by,"

"Thank you," Kafei proceeded out.

"Likewise," Link passed them.

"Watch over the town," Lucius added.

Finally, they stood outside in Termina Field, once more. The sound of the gate closing behind them was rather ominous, but they were sure they could take on whatever came their way, or, at least, retreat strategically. Kafei turned to look back at the town as they proceeded forward.

_Wait for me…Anju…_

**As if those two didn't have a sad enough story in the original game. I feel bad, but Link was right when he said that Kafei is a part of their team. Review, vote, yadda, yadda, etc, and so on.**


	25. Team Link Level 6

**Town, Swamp, Ocean, Mountain...we are now here...What will Team Link encounter in Snowhead? I still own nothing!****

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Level 6

"Uh, Lucius, didn't this area have more snow last time it was cursed?" Link commented as they came to a halt at the top of the, apparently, snow-less ramp that led down.

"Yes," Lucius replied. "But there's none this time…how shall we answer this riddle?"

"We don't," Kafei interjected, coming up to them. "We just head into Snowhead and find the jewel before Team Shadows,"

"Okay, if you insist, O omniscient son of the Mayor!" Link gave a corny and purposely incorrect bow. Kafei casually smacked him upside the head as he headed down the ramp.

"Be careful, Dodongos lurk around here," Lucius cautioned.

"You mean like that?" Link pointed at the Black Dodongo below.

"Yes," Lucius agreed as they all halted and crouched to look at it.

"I think we should sneak around, give Team Shadows an obstacle to deal with," Kafei suggested quietly.

"I like how deviously your mind works, Kafei," Link said with a mischievous smile. "I can just see Ganondorf's face now…" Kafei ignored him with a good-natured roll of the eyes (or as good-natured as you'd get from Kafei, anyway), and pulled out a small, black sphere.

"You guys start heading for the foothills, I'll blind it," the thief slunk off towards the Dodongo. Link looked at Lucius and shrugged before the two quietly got up and headed over as undetectably as they could. Kafei crept close to the Black Dodongo, managing to avoid being heard, and, when he saw the moment, he threw the smoke bomb into it face with an arcing throw. The Black Dodongo began to thrash and roar, spouting flame as it did so. Kafei sprang away, joining his running companions.

"On second thought, this plan is scary!" Link yelled as they hurried.

"You call yourself a hero?" Kafei challenged flatly. "Just keep going!" Lucius slapped his forehead with a groan.

Da-Dong! 07:30 met them in the foothills.

"You know," Link mentioned as they slowed to a walk and began the climb. "That Dodongo looked different, like it was empowered by some dark will,"

"Hmm, yes we have seen it before with the minions of Vaati and Ganondorf…" Lucius agreed. "Do you suppose that they are behind this?"

"I suppose we'll find out soon enough," Link shrugged. "Ganondorf always likes to announce his 'latest and greatest plan' to destroy me," He rubbed a finger under his nose in a self-important fashion. He was cut off as several Black Wolfos jumped out of seemingly nowhere and attacked. Link blocked one with his shield as it came for his head and spun, giving it a fatal slice. Kafei flipped out of the way as two darted for him, causing them to collide, before springing forward and slitting both their throats in a flash. Three more dashed at Lucius.

"_Gale of courage! _Farore's Gale!" he swept his staff in an arc and blew the foes away, slicing them up and slamming them into the cliff walls.

"This place is even more friendly than before," Kafei commented with sarcasm in his flat voice.

"Indeed," Lucius concurred, pulling out the jewel compass. "Let's see…if I'm correct in assuming, the jewel should be over in the Goron Village," He put it away.

"Well, we should be fine as long as there aren't too many more monsters around," Link said nonchalantly with a smile. They continued on a little ways to find that the grassy clearing was now full of Black Wolfos and the Smithy was surrounded.

"I think that counts as too many," Kafei said pointedly.

"Okay, I'm sorry for jinxing us," Link replied melodramatically.

"Fight later!" Lucius reprimanded as several foes noticed them and started closing on their position. "Here they come!" They countered the first assault rather well, but more came almost immediately.

"We can't fight them all, best we run!" Kafei commented in the midst of his mid-air acrobatics and smoke bomb raids.

"I agree!" Lucius raised his staff. "_O sacred flames that crafted the red earth, fall from the sky and set upon these un-pious fools who dare oppose you! _Din's Flare!" A single stream of fire fell from the sky, but, upon striking the ground, it produced a fiery explosion that engulfed around 50 of the Black Wolfos. The others howled in fear and confusion as the mighty conflagration continued to rage. "Move!" Lucius barked, prompting Link to bash the nearest still-fighting Black Wolfos in the face with his shield and hightail it. Kafei flipped and jumped around the enemies as he emulated the hero. Lucius raced past as well, blasting any stragglers out of the way with Farore's Wind.

Da-Dong! The clock tolled 08:00 as they reached the lake with the bridges.

"Didn't these used to be suspension bridges?" Link inquired of no one in particular as Lucius checked the jewel compass.

"Planks, bridges, same difference, why bring it up?" Kafei raised an eyebrow indifferently. Link shrugged.

"Just pointing out changes in case they matter," he said, turning away to look in the direction of the Goron Village.

"It's definitely over there, come," Lucius set out in front of them. A Black Wolfos attacked on the first island, but Lucius blew it back with Ruby Flame, effectively torching it and sending to tumbling into the water below.

"I've said it before, and I'll say it again, you're awesome, Lucius!" Link exclaimed, holding up his hand in a cheering fashion. The mage gave a small smile inwardly.

"Would you act your age?" Kafei grumbled as a Black Wolfos attacked on the second island. The thief dodged nimbly around it and killed it with two deft cuts of his knives.

"And you're cool too!" Link added. Kafei, as usual, hid whatever his reaction was to the complement.

"Don't say stupid stuff…" he muttered. "Come on, we've got a schedule,"

"Aww, Kafei's embarrassed," Link said in a sing-song voice. Lucius sighed as the hero suddenly found his face smashed into the ground. After prying him up, they continued to the Goron Village. Apparently, by the third island, the enemies had either run out or wised up, because they were unimpeded.

"Ho! Humans!" one of the Goron guards greeted them. "We see lots of humans lately. Just the three days ago, during blizzard, red-haired female human and two male humans come here,"

"Must be Team Eye," Link deduced to his allies.

"Hold it, there was a blizzard here?" Lucius inquired of the Goron.

"Yes, it was terrible, even worse than the one all those years ago, but it just went away, two days ago," the Goron replied.

"Hmm…" the party proceeded on a bit. "So this place _was_ cursed, after all," Lucius presumed.

"What broke the curse, I wonder?" Kafei wondered. "Oh, well, we can figure that part out later. Which way to the jewel?" Lucius pulled out the compass and saw. He double-checked and then triple-checked.

"Could this be correct?" he looked out to the abyss next to the village. "The compass says that it's out there, somewhere,"

"You're kidding, right?" Link was not happy.

"No, I'm afraid not," Lucius shook his head. "It's likely in one of those rounded stalagmites out there," The clock tolled 08:30.

"Blast…" Kafei grumbled to the ground. "Well," he looked at Lucius. "How do you propose we get across?"

"We could warp again," Lucius suggested.

"No!" the other two said immediately.

"Very well…" Lucius frowned. "Then I'll have to improvise," He held his staff aloft, but put it back down. "First, I'll need a green potion," Link quickly handed a vial of it over, hoping that another discussion about his packing skills wouldn't come up. Lucius downed the potion and then raised his staff again. He chanted some arcane words and a flat polygon of light appeared in front of them, floating in midair, just off the side of the cliff. It was just big enough for the three of them. "All aboard," Lucius stepped on, keeping his staff aloft. Kafei stepped on without too much hesitation. Link looked a bit nervous.

"Hurry up!" Kafei said, annoyed. The hero finally relented and boarded as well. The platform then moved away from the clifftop.

"You sure this thing is safe?" Link asked nervously. It was a long way to the bottom.

"Since when are his spells unsafe?" Kafei replied. They both remembered the warp fiasco that had temporarily cost them their arms and/or legs and put them in the middle of the desert for a good hour before it could be rectified. "On second thought, don't answer that,"

"Over there," Kafei pointed to the stalagmite in question as he referenced to the compass. Their platform finally stopped next to the entrance of a hidden cave. They all stepped off and the platform vanished. The cave was filled with a red glow and the red jewel was sitting lodged between a couple of small stalagmites. Link reached down and pried it free.

"Chalk one up for the good guys!" Link shouted, holding it up triumphantly. His voice echoed all over the abyss and the village. Kafei slowly uncovered his ears.

"Well, if Team Shadows is here, you just alerted them, noisy dolt!" he said waspishly.

"They'd likely spot us coming back, anyway, if they're in the village right now," Lucius interjected soothingly. "Come on," He reformed the platform and the embarked again on the trip.

Da-Dong! The bell tolled 09:00 as they were almost back.

"Well, this is dull…" Link yawned. Suddenly, they heard someone yelling in the distance.

"I'll teach that kid to usurp the King of the Gerudos!" it said.

"Link!" Kafei pointed forward, his sharp eyes having detected the source of the shout. A ball of energy was hurtling their way from the cliff top. Link gave a cry of surprise and pulled his Mirror Shield in front of him in time to rebound the attack.

"Lucius! Hurry this platform along!" Kafei ordered. It seemed that he heard, because the speed almost doubled. The ball was coming back again, but Link bounced it with a swing of his sword. It returned again, and Link deflected it again. They were now close enough to see as the ball hit its originator, Ganondorf, and knocked him back several paces as it exploded, energy jumping over his body as he gave a cry of pain and anger.

"ARGH! That little…" he grumbled. The platform was close now. Link, tired of being a sitting duck, donned the Bunny Hood and leapt at them. They all dodged, but he performed a double-speed Hurricane spin after them as the others arrived and disembarked. Vaati held an air shield against the attack, but was still being pushed back. Knil and Ganondorf left him to it as they rushed Lucius and Kafei. Kafei flipped out of the way as Knil took a swing but quickly had to block a flurry of blows as the alter ego recovered, almost instantly. Ganondorf fired powerful waves of darkness at Lucius, who barely blocked it and sent it flying in random directions with a cry.

Link's attack was ended and now he was blocking wind spells and dodging flying objects. He glanced over as Lucius dived out of the way of a Warlock Punch and blocked another with a magic barrier.

"Lucius!" he dashed over and gave Ganondorf a shield attack to the face, catching him partially off-guard and sending him hurtling into the abyss. He barely recovered in time to avoid hitting the bottom. "Here," the hero handed the mage a vial of green potion. "You can't fight with depleted magic," A salvo of magic suddenly smashed into them as Lucius chugged the potion and Link was send smashing into a wall.

"Don't let your guard down, idiot!" Knil reprimanded. Vaati swooped over to engage Kafei and immediately sent a whirlwind after him. Lucius jumped back as Knil fired another salvo at them and sent a beam of blue light out of his hand. The beam flew to Link and he glowed briefly before getting back up, wounds gone.

"Thanks!" Link said gratefully.

"YOU!" Ganondorf raged, having flown out of the pit. Lucius ran over to engage him.

"That ridiculous mask won't save you," Knil threatened, looking at the twitching bunny ears in an annoyed fashion.

"Wanna bet?" Link replied with an annoying grin.

"Your light can't save you forever, Lucius!" Ganondorf shouted as the mage dodged another Warlock punch. Lucius countered by firing a bolt of light into his face and sending him flipping back through the air. He quickly righted himself and fired a salvo of dark energy blasts.

"Divine Lightning!" the mage cried, casting the lightning of judgment against the dark attack. Ganondorf summoned a Black Hole and fired the mass of energy at the bolt. The two clashed with loud noises of electrical interference and the entire area shook. The nearby rock cracked a little and static electricity jumped through the air at random intervals from the clashing point of the spells.

Vaati continued making his whirlwind chase Kafei, but the thief suddenly ran up the side of a rock outcropping and launched himself at the wind mage.

"Blast!" he released his whirlwind and brought up a shield but Kafei threw a smoke bomb at him. "Ah!" he was blinded by the stinging dust. Suddenly, he felt several slices all over his body and then a blow to the head that smashed him into a wall, taking him out of the fight for the moment as he flopped limply to the ground.

"Humph, I must admit that you're faster with that mask," Knil sneered as he and Link fought through the village, he pushing the hero back with each flurry of blows. "But I'm still the better fighter," He locked swords with Link and then glowed silver again. The detonation destroyed the bridge they were on and they fell to the lower level, picking up the fight immediately as they landed. Knil jumped over Link's swing and slashed downward, but the blow bounced off of the mirror shield. Link took advantage of this by performing a leaping spin attack, injuring Knil several times before he went sprawling away. Rolling backwards once and quickly leaping up, he dodged a smoke bomb that suddenly came out of nowhere by leaping back onto the upper paths. Kafei cursed and dashed along a rock face before doing and flip and landing behind Knil. Unfortunately, the alter ego had already spun and now the thief was deflecting blows like the wind. Link suddenly jumped up from below and slashed downward. Knil did a pivoting flip over Kafei, but still suffered a cut across his lower back. Such an injury was a trifle, however, and he kicked Kafei into Link, knocking them both off of the bridge.

A few drops of sweat dripped from Lucius's face as he forced his spell at Ganondorf. The Divine Lightning was his ultimate spell, but that didn't mean that it couldn't be overpowered. His opponent wasn't doing much better. In fact, he finally gave out around this point and was pierced with light.

"AGGGH!" he roared as he was fried by the light, jolts of energy shot all over his body as beams of light shone out of his joints, and fell into the abyss, crashing into the ground below. Lucius sighed and ran over to where Knil had jumped down to engage Link and Kafei again. They were both trying valiantly to strike him but, aside from a cut on his back, there was no damage, and he kept dodging and blocking them.

"Is this really all there is to Team Link?" Knil smirked, flipping backwards as Lucius fired a salvo of fire blasts at him. They barely missed his allies as they too jumped away.

"Watch where you're aiming!" Kafei reprimanded. Knil fired a dark blast at him in his moment of distraction and he was forced to dodge it, but a second caught him in the face and he flew off to land somewhere in the scenery. Link's strike was blocked a second after the spell hit and the hero looked a bit annoyed at this opponent that just had no weak spots. He continued swinging at him as Lucius cast another restoring spell on him and then proceeded to fire bolts of light at Knil, forcing him to mix up his strategy a little. He rolled out of the way of one of Link's swings and behind him, performing a spinning strike. Link, however, seeing and knowing what move he was using, countered with a backwards Helm Splitter and severely injured Knil's shoulder. He jumped away and faced the heroes, holding his blade with his good arm and grimacing in anger and pain.

_Blast it. _he growled in his head. _I can't move my left arm. _Lucius took advantage of this diversion and fired a salvo of light bolts at Knil. Though right-handed (the opposite of Link), Knil was at a sore disadvantage without his left arm, not that that stopped him from deflecting the spells away with a swing of his blade and attacking Link viciously. He jumped at the hero, smashing his blade into the mirror shield and then springing off of it, flying at Lucius. The mage jumped back but the alter ego was on him in an instant, slashing at him. His staff deflected a few blows before Link caught up and kicked Knil in the back, sending him sprawling towards the abyss as Lucius dodged away from the trajectory. He rolled back to his feet, inches from the fall, and deflected several more bolts of light before the foothold gave way, having been weakened by the two mighty spells clashing earlier.

"LINK!" he roared in outrage, falling into the pit and being swallowed by the deep fog that hovered there. Link sighed in relief.

"Glad that's over," he commented. He turned back to the village, which was a bit damaged, to say the least. "Let's go find Kafei,"

"Right, and make sure you apologize to any Gorons you see," Lucius added.

They set off across the village, finally finding Kafei next to the Elder's House, in a rather uncomfortable position.

"Here he is," Link picked the thief up and set him down on more even ground. The bell tolled 09:30.

"And there's Vaati," Lucius pointed to the KO'd wind mage, who was slumped by the wall nearby.

"Ahh, just leave him," Link waved his hand. "Anyway, shouldn't you heal Kafei?"

"Let's take him up the slope so that I don't heal Vaati by mistake," the mage explained.

"Okay, you're the boss, I guess…" Link picked up the thief again. He was surprisingly light, but, then again, it made sense. How else could he be so nimble and light-footed?

"Is the battle over?" one of the Goron guards asked as he and his partner came back through the entrance to the village. "That was one of the biggest battles in this village's history,"

"Yeah, it's done," Link gave a cocky thumbs-up. "We thrashed 'em!"

"That is good, a battle well fought is a battle that earns respect of Gorons," the Goron nodded. "But we respect the losers too. They are still strong," Link decided not to mention the whole 'bad guy-good guy' thing, as Gorons are just too nice for their own good and wouldn't get it, anyway, probably.

"All right, now I can heal…" Lucius held aloft his staff, yet again. "_O precipitation of wisdom, pour down and wash away the wounds and woe of your servants! _Soothing Rain!" A rain cloud formed over the party and poured a relaxing shower on them that smelled of spring and relaxation. Soon, their vigor was restored, and the cloud vanished again.

"Ahh! The smell of fresh rain!" the Goron commented happily. Kafei stirred and sat up.

"What happened?" he asked flatly. "I'm wet, did Link screw up again?"

"Hey!" Link objected.

"My healing spell is responsible," Lucius replied, gesturing with his staff and causing a ring of fire to form briefly and dry them off. "There, now we should head back before those three wake up,"

"Shouldn't we kill them while we can?" Kafei suggested darkly. Link shook his head.

"No, it wouldn't be right. Besides, have you tried killing Ganondorf? He's worse than a Kokiri-Roach!" he laughed at his own joke and led the way out of the village. Kafei wasn't impressed, but walked with Lucius after him.

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**Not much left now. The story is nearing the climax. Just two or three more chapters before all the teams are done. Review, vote, etc.**


	26. Team Link Level 7

**The end draws near...the next chapter is likely to be or be near the last. I still own nothing!****

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Level 7

More Black Wolfos attacked as they crossed the platforms again. Link did the usual block and counter-killblow, and Kafei blinded and cut throats. It was this way that they came to the mountain village as the bells rang 10:00.

"It looks like they're still mad," Kafei commented flatly as dozens of howls sounded out, followed by the horde of Black Wolfos coming at them.

"I'll show 'em!" Link charged his sword and started spinning around the area wildly with his Hurricane Spin. Many Black Wolfos were killed by the attack, though several others managed to block with their claws. Kafei took advantage of the distraction and sprang nimbly though the distracted monsters, administering various deathblows to various spots. Finally, Link's attack petered out, leaving him dizzy and surrounded by enemies. Fortunately, he'd come to get used to fighting like this, so he only got half as mauled as usual.

"Din's Flare!" Lucius thrust his staff forward, incinerating about 40 in the fiery burst. Several Black Wolfos jumped at the mage, but he blocked them with a barrier and they were soon dispatched by Kafei or Din's Fire.

"Restore!" he sent a beam of blue light to Link, seeing he was a bit battered, and his wounds vanished.

"Thanks!" Link shouted over the growling and howling, going back to blocking and pulling off instant spin attacks.

"_O sacred winds that created living creatures, arise and take form of a tempest to end all sacrilege!_ Farore's Storm!" Lucius commanded, whirling his staff in a circle and then pointing it at the sky. Wind gathered from all directions and converged on the battlefield. Three whirlwinds formed and tore through the enemies, sending them hurtling into the heavens and the walls, slicing and destroying. Fortunately, Lucius was able to guide them away from the smithy, so that it wouldn't be sucked into the gale, too. The smith and his assistant were probably not taking it well, though.

Link and Kafei took it upon themselves to take out the other enemies whilst they panicked, bringing the monster count down to almost 0, as one could never say it was 0.

Da-Dong! It was now 10:30.

"That was a pretty tense fight," Link said as they regrouped on the former battlefield. "But we showed 'em!"

"Sure…it was you vanquishing the most foes," Kafei replied sarcastically. Link looked at them and scratched the back of his head.

"Okay, Lucius did a lot and you helped, happy?" the hero admitted.

"No," Kafei turned away. "But, is this the legendary smithy?"

"Yeah, I got my sword tempered here," Link pulled it out for emphasis. "Why?"

"My knives could use a bit of work," Kafei answered. "I noticed that they had trouble on the enemies of late,"

"Well, if they want to help in times of late, I say go ahead," Lucius shrugged. "We have collected, at least, 600 rupees from these battles,"

"Ah, welcome!" the squinty-eyed smith greeted them with his usual smile. "Was it you trying to blow down my house, earlier?"

"My deepest apologies, I tried to avoid that at all costs," Lucius bowed.

"Well, no harm done, except almost giving my assistant a heart attack," the smith pointed at the giant man in the back. He seemed extremely agitated and grunted and groaned at them. "Shut up! We're fine!"

"Could you tune up my knives?" Kafei stepped forward and pulled them out. "They don't seem to be up to scratch,"

"Hmm…" the smith took them and examined them closely. "Genuine Terminan craftsmanship…made of durable steel…a bit dull from use…light for swift attacks…yes, I could modify these," He put them down next to him. "For 200 rupees, I can temper them with Gold Dust and sharpen them so that they cut through all but the toughest of hides,"

"No prob!" Link fished out four purple rupees. "How long until it's done?"

"Hmm…" the smith went over and put the money in his cash drawer.

"I'd give it 'till 14:00," he said nonchalantly.

"That's 3 and a half hours!" Kafei exclaimed.

"Lucky it's not a sword, that takes a whole day," Link interjected. "Trust me, I know,"

"Well, you three are lucky to stay here while we work," the smith offered. The assistant gave a couple of protesting grunts. "Just go upstairs and stay in the sitting room and don't touch any of this guy's stuff,"

"I'd rather not…" Kafei muttered.

"Come, let's leave them to it," Lucius grabbed them by the shoulders and took them upstairs. The sitting room had no door and was to their immediate left.

"Well, furnished, huh?" Link commented, looking at the one small chair, one big chair, and three wooden chairs that were, obviously, constructed, on the fly, for guests.

"To employ a euphemism…" Kafei grumbled, perching himself on one of the chairs.

"Well, what should we do while we wait?" Link asked as he and Lucius took a seat too, minding the large one. Who knew what that ogre of an assistant could do to them?

"Sleep?" Kafei suggested doubtfully.

"Nah…let's tell scary stories!" Link exclaimed.

"Besides the one about the moon and my never getting to be with my dear Anju?" Kafei said darkly.

"How about the one about my master and Ganondorf and how he took the wrong path and killed our master?" Lucius added forebodingly. Link looked at them with a bit of nervousness.

"Okay, okay…so we've had enough scary…" he thought for a moment. "How about a funny story?"

"No stories," Kafei said in a tone that warned to close the subject or risk bodily harm.

"Fine…guess I'll just sit here and look at stuff…" he pulled out the jewel compass, his sword, his shield, some bombs, a vial of green potion, and various other paraphernalia he had on his person, and started perusing it. Lucius pulled a book out of his bag and began to read about the Holodrum Revolt of 200 years ago. Kafei leaned back and dozed off, dreaming of a world with just him and Anju…

"Hey, guys!" they were disturbed much time later. "Wake up!"

"I'm up!" Link sat up and pulled a map off of his face. Kafei flipped out of his chair and perched on top of it in a defensive stance.

"Oh, it's you," he grumbled, jumping down.

"So I assume that you're done?" Lucius put his book away, having been reading the whole time without falling asleep. Could challenge Shad for the nerd title, that man.

"Yes, they're ready," the smith nodded. "Just come down and get them,"

Kafei gave the knives a couple of test swings and admired the gold highlights on the blades.

"Yes, these are high-quality knives," Kafei turned and bowed to the smith, shocking Link to no end. Granted, it wasn't really much of a bow, but still. "Thank you for providing your services,"

"No need to be so formal," the smith waved his hand around. "I like my work and I only charge to stay in business,"

"Sure…" Link muttered. "Can we go now? I don't wanna spend the night in Snowhead,"

"Farewell," Lucius gave a short bow to the smith as well and they walked out the door.

"Bye," Link said informally as he shut the door.

"Okay, it's 14:00 now, give or take," Lucius confirmed. "We have two hours until sunset,"

"Brilliant deduction," Kafei replied. "Let's go before more enemies show up,"

Indeed, no more Black Wolfos arrived to challenge them as they headed back to Termina Field. Perhaps they were shoring up their numbers, or, maybe they were just afraid of the trio.

Da-Dong! 15:00.

"Oh, crap…" Link commented as they saw three Black Dodongos waiting for them. The three noticed them almost instantly and came at them, inhaling to unleash a firestorm.

"_I, who stand in the full light of the Sacred Realm, doth call upon the divine power of the sages to summon hither the lightning of judgment and cast it upon these corrupt souls before me!_ Divine Lightning!" Lucius cried, thrusting his staff skyward. The clouds were parted by a powerful light before a massive bolt of light energy shot down, striking the middle Black Dodongo and killing it. The explosion of light on impact killed the other two as well and all three monsters were left to lie with smoke oozing from their mouths.

"Whoa!" Link gasped. "I forgot how awesome your magic is!"

"Remind me to never anger him…" Kafei muttered to nobody.

"Shall we move on?" Lucius was relatively unaffected by the surge of adrenaline that came with casting the full spell, or so it seemed until he took off at a faster pace than usual.

"I don't think they're letting us in," Kafei commented as Link gave the north gate a last kick for good measure.

"Blast…where do we stay, then?" Link pondered aloud.

"Have you forgotten that we are always welcome at the ranch?" Lucius put a hand to his forehead. "Besides, Romani would be happy to see you,"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Link turned away to hide the slight blush. "Fine, let's head there, Link. Okay, Link," He hurried off.

"I think you got him," Kafei smiled slightly.

"Of course," Lucius allowed himself a smile too. "It's what I do,"

"Hurry up, guys!" Link called from ahead.

Da-Dong! The bell tolled 15:30 as they passed the west gate, also closed tight.

"You think that Romani would like it if Link stayed on as a rancher?" Lucius asked Kafei. "He's already got experience,"

"Well, that depends on a number of things…" Kafei shrugged, playing along, despite how hypocritical doing so was. "For one, he'll have to make sure to take her out a lot and-"

"I don't have a crush on Romani!" Link exclaimed, face belying his words with its redness. "Now let's just get over there before night comes and the Bubbles come out," Kafei looked ahead, looked surprised, and then waved.

"Hey, Romani!" he called.

"Nice try, but I'm not falling for it," Link crossed his arms and pouted. Kafei and Lucius hurried past him. He turned, saw they weren't kidding, and resolved to get them back later before following them.

She looked a bit uneasy to see them, to say the least, and the first words out of Kafei's mouth were proof enough why.

"You aren't supposed to be out," Kafei stated as though it were fact.

"But Romani can't just let you guys run around doing stuff while Romani just sits at the ranch and hopes that her sister and cousin are all right!" the rancher girl protested.

"And shame on your uncle for letting this happen," Kafei continued coolly. Talon gave a snort and Ingo kicked him in the shin.

"What in tarnation?" Talon exclaimed, looking around. "What's the meanin' of kickin' me?"

"You're the subject of the conversation!" Ingo retorted.

"That's no reason to go around kickin' people!" Talon snapped back. "I've been on my feet all day!" As they continued to argue on about how Ingo had to do chores and adventure, the others ignored the two and went back to what they were saying.

"Hey! You have no right to treat her like a kid, yeah?" Ashei stepped forward. "She's just as skilled as me or any other archer out there!"

"And her team is quite formidable," Shad added with a nod.

"Never underestimate even the smallest cog in the clock," Rusl interjected as well.

"I must agree," Lucius said in his soothing tones. "Romani has proven herself time and again alongside us. I don't know why she must remain idle,"

"Well, I actually just didn't want the ranch undefended while I was gone," Link admitted, scratching the back of his head as he took off his cap and held it in his hands.

"Really?" Romani was shocked. "Why didn't you tell Romani that?"

"In hindsight, maybe I should have," Link replied apologetically.

"But, would that have really stopped you from leaving?" Kafei pointed out. "You are headstrong, and wouldn't have taken 'no' for an answer. Telling you anything was a moot point. Perhaps we should have just left without a word,"

"Kafei, don't say stuff like that," Link said to the glum thief. The thief gave a hmph and turned away with crossed arms.

"Mayhap we should proceed to the ranch before further conversation," Shad suggested, watching Ingo and Talon as they now grappled on the ground, kicking and biting with the occasional punch.

"Romani agrees," the rancher girl acquiesced as Rusl, Ashei, Link, and Kafei went over to break them up.

A few minutes and a couple of scrapes and bruises later, they were walking grumpily with the rest of the party. Ingo, to say the least, was smug about how Talon now didn't show a bit of drowsiness. Heading up the dirt road, they heard the toll of 16:00.

"So, Link, what have you been up to of late?" Rusl asked the green-clad hero, now wearing his cap again.

"Well, we headed to the swamp and fought with the villain team, but they managed to beat a couple of us and take the jewel, so we had to hide in the Woods of Mystery until I could fetch potions to revive them. Then-" Link continued on, all the way down the road and didn't finish until they were almost at the ranch house at 16:30.

"…so we just left them, took the jewel, and headed back to Clock Town. But it was locked down and we couldn't get in, so we headed over here," Link concluded.

"So your team has one jewel and theirs has two," Rusl deduced. "This news is a bit troubling,"

"Finally! I'm going to fix a big dinner for everyone!" Talon ran inside the house.

"Hey!" Ingo protested. "You're not sticking me with the animal chores again!" He stood there for a moment, getting no reply, and stomped off to the barn, muttering threats.

"Romani will help cook," Romani declared, going inside the house as well.

After this, the party each went their separate ways to wait for dinner. Lucius went inside to chat with Talon and Romani, assuming they weren't too busy to reply. Ashei drifted off to some remote corner of the ranch. Kafei just plain disappeared and no one could find him or wanted to try. Link and Rusl took a walk around the ranch, chatting, and Shad was left standing by the farmhouse.

"So you've been everywhere, had a run-in with Team Eye, and still haven't found any clues…" Lucius concluded, sitting at the table.

"Nope!" Romani replied. "We thought that the "black-haired girl" had something to do with it, but it was just Ashei,"

"Apparently, Team Eye's been ahead of us this whole time," Talon added.

"Well, they've been trying to find out the truth behind events of late," Lucius replied. "I daresay what they've found out has been fruitful, but their information is still vague, at best,"

"Stupid, lazy Talon, sticking me with the chores all the time…" Ingo grumbled, putting hay in the proper place and storing the freshly milked milk in jars properly.

"Everyone has a job to do," Kafei stated from his position in the rafters. How he got up there was probably a thief trade secret. Ingo jumped and looked up.

"What in tarnation are you doing hanging around and scaring people?" the ranch hand demanded.

"I'm sitting up here," Kafei replied as though it were obvious. "I just felt compelled to speak on your inane muttering. Pay me no heed if you wish," Ingo turned red at the obvious calmness, wanting to explode, but decided to take the advice and get back to work.

"Job to do, my left shoe…" he grumbled. Kafei ignored him and looked out the upper window at the sky, wondering when he'd get to see his beloved Anju again and why he was even on this journey.

_Friendship…that's why, right?_

"Lucius, where did you learn to cook?" Romani asked, obviously, impressed. Talon had had to go to the attic and get an extra table and chairs, so the mage had taken over the cooking of the soup.

"Books, mostly, but I've gotten in some practice while traveling with Link," he replied. "Between you and I, Link is inept at cooking anything that isn't flour, water, and/or syrup-based,"

"Romani! Could ya come up here and help me?" Talon called from upstairs.

"Comin'!" she hurried up the stairs and to the ladder that extended from a hatch in the ceiling. Talon, somehow, had wedged himself between a table and the edge of the opening of the trapdoor. Romani giggled a bit before trying to help him out of this rather unorthodox fix.

"It's been a while since we two just sat together," Rusl commented as he and Link reclined on the ground, hands behind their head, staring up at the sky.

"Yeah…it seems like forever since I left Ordon," Link agreed. "How are they?"

"Uli's last letter said they were fine, but I think Ilia misses you," Rusl glanced meaningfully in Link's direction and then looked back at the sky.

"Yeah, I know, I need to go back to Hyrule sometimes…but I just lose myself on the road and forget everything until I stop for a minute," the green-clad hero sighed. "And now I have a thing for Romani, too,"

"Well, you're young," Rusl chuckled. "It's only natural that you have crushes on every girl you see,"

"Hey, you're only ten years older than me!" Link objected. "Quit acting like an old man,"

"Oh, my back!" Rusl feigned, twitching like he had a condition. He broke down into laughter after about a minute and Link joined in soon after.

The bell tolled 17:00 as supper was ready.

"Finally," Lucius put the finishing touches on his elixir soup that he had perfected over the years and poured nine bowls, putting them on the table and the extra table, which Talon and Romani had brought out of the attic to allow more people to gave a spot to sit.

"I have to admit, I'm glad you came," Talon commented. "I never knew how to make much but cheese soup and roasted cow,"

"I'm always happy to share my recipes with others," Lucius smiled politely at the complement. "Romani, would you be so kind as to summon the others?"

"Romani would feel privileged," Romani went over and seized the large bell that hung on the wall. Going out the door, she began to ring it vigorously, its sound echoing all over the ranch.

"Is that the dinner bell?" Link and Rusl showed up almost immediately.

"Yep! Come and get it!" Romani replied, allowing them entrance. Ingo showed up next, coming over from the outdoor shower that was concealed by wooden walls, behind the barn. Yes, they had a tub, but there was a shower outside for if you got way too dirty for the tub and Ingo, unfortunately, had fallen in a pile of something very unpleasant and filthy while doing his chores. Enough said.

"About time!" he grumbled, shuffling in the house. Kafei jumped off the roof of the farmhouse and went through the door without a word. Shad arrived next, looking a bit down, but he went in anyway.

"What's up, Shad?" Link asked, already at the table with the others.

"It's nothing," he forced a smile. "What are we having? It smells heavenly,"

"Elixir soup," Lucius put a bowl down at a table for him. The bookworm sat down and stared at the golden broth.

"Where's Ashei?" Rusl asked.

"I'm sure she's about somewhere," Shad replied evasively. Just then, the aforementioned female walked in the door.

"There you are," Lucius commented, handing her a bowl. She took it without a word and slumped into a seat across from Shad, eating without looking up.

"Sorry, no leads yet, and it's kinda hard to look, anyway, since the villains are always one step behind us," Link said to Romani at their end of the group.

"Well, Romani has searched everywhere. She might as well retire," the rancher girl slumped.

"Now, now, Romani, there's no reason to be talkin' like that," Talon interjected. "We may be out of places to look, but that don't mean a thing!"

"If you truly care, you'll find them, in the end," Kafei said darkly. This thief really did have a way of veiling things in pessimism. Of course, considering his sad back-story with Anju and the moon, it wasn't surprising.

The meal ended around 17:30 and most of the myriad of people decided to go about looking into sleeping arrangements. Kafei, of course, slipped away after about a minute, disliking the noise. Ashei left too, not really into interior decorating all that much. Shad, after being almost bowled over by moving furniture a few times, decided that he would leave the house for a while too.

"No, I say that we need to put the couch over here!" Ingo shoved into the position he indicated.

"But then there's no room for the cots!" Talon objected, shoving it over to another spot. "Here is where it goes,"

"Actually, that would block the stairs," Link pointed out.

"Perhaps in the middle of the room?" Lucius suggested.

"The table's in the way!" Ingo objected. "And who's gonna move it?" After a short argument, Link and Talon ended up carrying the tables and chairs up to the attic. Rusl decided to leave around this point, as Lucius and Ingo were now in a bit of a debate over where to put the cots vs. the couch. When Link and Talon came back downstairs, they added in their two bits and Lucius gave up, going to stand in the corner and waiting to heal any injuries that were sure to ensue at the rate this was going. At this point, Rusl came back in, chuckling to himself, and broke up the fight. Once Romani had shown back up from her sudden disappearance to the bathroom, she and Rusl made the others work together peacefully. Ingo tripped Link and tried to pretend it was an accident. Okay, almost peacefully. A fight then ensued and Link, Ingo, and Talon were soon having it out. Lucius sighed and prepared to break it up as his staff glowed.

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**You know what happens next. Magic-induced pain is what's next. Never make Lucius have to break you up. Review, vote, and so on. I'll probably be putting up a different poll after Team Link's Story is over.**


	27. Team Link Level 8

**This is it. The end of the Team Link story and the beginning of the Final Story. I own nothing!****

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Level 8

**Night of the Fourth Day**

Arrangements, as a bruised and bloody Ingo informed the combined groups, were not good.

"We can only hold five or six in the house," the grumpy farm hand informed the combined teams. "Three or four will have to sleep in the barn,"

"I call!" Link shouted.

"I do too!" Lucius added.

"And I," Kafei said.

"Romani, too!" Romani interjected.

"And I ain't sleepin' in the barn!" Ingo shouted. Talon was already snoozing on the floor, so they knew where he'd sleep.

"Looks like we get the barn," Rusl sighed, looking to his comrades and starting out the door.

"The barn?" Shad repeated, looking very unhappy. "But think of the disease and dirt!" Ashei grabbed his arm and dragged him along.

"Come on, city boy…" she muttered, rolling her eyes at his antics.

"I beg of you!" was the last hammed up thing that the other six heard before the door shut.

"What a drama king," Romani and Link commented simultaneously.

"That was odd," Talon added in, having just awoken randomly, as he often did.

"So, Grasshopper, do you remember when 'they' came to take the cows?" Romani asked Link as he scrubbed his teeth with a wooden toothbrush.

"Of course," Link nodded, spitting into the basin. "Lucius and I had just gotten access to Powder Kegs, so we came here on the first day to see what we could do. You asked us to do that balloon course and, one thing led to another. We eventually fought 'them' off as a team,"

"But, Grasshopper…why didn't you ask Romani to join you until the final day?" Romani looked at him with the cutest eyes she could muster. He looked away.

"Well…the guilt finally got to us," he replied sheepishly. "We just couldn't let you die in that cycle after we went back, not after…anyway, we thought you could be helpful and you remember Lucius's memory pendant, don't you?" Romani nodded. "We thought that you might remember the apocalypse if we gave you one in a new cycle,"

"So you just wanted to spare Romani's feelings?" Romani turned away sadly.

"No, no! We just wanted to recruit you without having to redo the events. Why wait to get a decent ally?" Link replied hastily. "The only reason we let Kafei join is that he almost kicked my butt for saying something about Anju and he stayed on until we finally…killed Sakon and took back his Sun Mask,"

"Why wasn't he here to help with 'them', then?" Romani inquired.

"He was," Link replied surely, and then looked puzzled. "But, oddly enough, he just disappeared before the attack…maybe he was guarding the barn inside?"

"Are you two ever going to bed?" Lucius asked from the doorway. "We have work to do tomorrow,"

"Oh, yeah," Link turned to Romani. "Well, good night, Romani,"

"Night, Grasshopper," she kissed his cheek and fled to her room with a red face. Link, too, had a flushed complexion. Lucius decided to pointedly ignore this and go back downstairs.

Da-Dong! 18:30.

"Link," the mage addressed him as he came downstairs, sealing an envelope and putting it on the table. "We're getting up an hour before sunrise tomorrow,"

"Huh? Why?" the hero asked.

"We think that Team Shadows is in Clock Town," Kafei replied. "Meaning that they'll have a head start on us if we leave at the normal time,"

"So we have to give up our sleep time because of Ganondork?" Link grumbled. "Fine, whatever," He went over to his cot and flopped down. Kafei was mildly curious about his mood but quashed his inquiries and rolled up on his cot too. Lucius sat down on the couch and smiled slightly at Link before lying down and pulling his blanket over him.

Da-Dong! 05:00 tolled in the distance. Lucius was awake immediately, his internal clock as sterling as ever.

He went over and prodded Kafei with his staff from a safe distance. The thief jumped up, knives drawn, but soon put them away again as he accessed the current situation. He went over and kicked Link, forcing him awake with an annoyed grunt.

"What is it?" he asked groggily.

"Time to go," Lucius whispered. "Here," he passed out some rations. "Now come on,"

The morning air was a bit chilly and the light was a bit dim to go by, as it was not yet dawn, but they proceeded out of the ranch.

"Are you sure we should just leave like this?" Link asked, now more awake.

"I left a letter," Lucius explained. "They know where we are,"

"Well, I suppose a letter is better than nothing," Kafei said flatly.

"You would know," Link commented, referring to the letters he used to send Anju while he was in hiding in the Curiosity Shop. Kafei gave him a warning look.

The Milk Road was rather quiet at this hour. Kafei liked the peaceful atmosphere. Link, it seemed, did not, and started tooting on his ocarina. After listening to the Bolero of Fire, the Serenade of Water, the Minuet of Forest, Saria's Song, and the Song of Healing for about thirty minutes, Kafei smacked him in the back of the head and he dropped he instrument.

"Hey!" Link objected, putting it away. "You could've just said something,"

"I prefer hitting you," Kafei replied indifferently. Link pouted and continued ahead.

**Dawn of the Fifth Day**

A rooster crowed in the distance as the clock tower began its six tolls. Dawn was upon them.

"We best go at a quick pace," Lucius suggested. "No telling when the villains will depart,"

"Yes, let's head for Ikana Canyon," Kafei agreed.

"How did you guys know that's where the last one is?" Link inquired.

"Process of elimination," Kafei replied. "Dolt…" he added under his breath.

"Okay," Link donned the Bunny Hood. "Ready?" He took a starting position.

"What are you doing now?" Kafei said impatiently.

"Set? Go!" he took off at a sprint across the field.

"This isn't a race!" Kafei took off after him. Lucius sighed and shook his head as he took off after them.

Da-Dong! 06:30 had passed partway through the trip and it was now 06:45.

"Well, that was fun," a blackened and disheveled Link commented, standing unsteadily by the gates of the canyon.

"Well, you shouldn't have raced through a horde of Black Bombachus," Kafei commented flatly, arms crossed. One Restore spell later, the group crossed the fence.

"Didn't there used to be two sets of gates here?" Link said to no one in particular. He was ignored.

"More Black Bombachus," Lucius raised his staff and sniped them all with bolts of light.

"Show-off…" Link muttered. He got a bonk on the head. "Ow…"

Da-Dong! It was now 07:00. They came to the cliff that blocked the way into the canyon and looked up at the dead tree. "I got it!" Link pulled out his Hookshot and fired. It latched into the tree and began to pull him up. The other two quickly latched onto him and came along for the ride. "Ow! Don't pull!"

"Well, you didn't give us time to grab a comfortable spot," Kafei said with his arms crossed and looking away.

"Jerk…" Link muttered.

"Let's just keep moving," Lucius intervened.

So they proceeded along, eventually coming to a grassy area in the midst of the wasteland. Da-Dong! 07:30.

"Hmm…no enemies so far…" Lucius observed, looking around. "That's odd," Kafei looked over the scenery with fogged-over eyes and then closed them and focused back on the task at hand.

"I don't like being here, let's get in and out, quickly," the thief grumbled. They all knew that Sakon's old hideout was just along the path to the right and that was where the smiling bandit had fought his last battle.

"So…what'll we do when we get the last jewel?" Link asked to break the ice and change the subject.

"Likely we'll fight the villains for the ones in their possession, like always," Lucius answered coolly.

They came to a halt at the river. "Look at that," Lucius pointed up at the ledges that bore dead trees.

"Yeah, there's…what's rope doing up there?" Link's eyebrows went up.

"I assume someone was here before us," Kafei deduced. "Though the rope looks like it's been there for a couple of days or more,"

"Well, whatever the reason, let's get going," Lucius broke up the conversation again.

At the top of the cliff, Kafei finished cutting the other rope.

"Why'd you do that?" Link asked. "Those guys can fly, remember?"

"Yes, but this will discourage them from…just let me do this," Kafei bonked him on the head.

"Cut it out! There are enemies!" Lucius warned as several Black Gibdos advanced slowly on the party. "_O sacred flames that created the red earth!_ Din's Flare!" A stream of fire fell into the Black Gibdos' midst and they were destroyed in the fiery explosion that followed. More rose out of the ground, though.

"This place is cursed, the undead are endless," Kafei observed.

"Din's Flare!" Lucius cried again. More Gibdos were annihilated.

"The jewel is in the castle," Link informed them, looking at the compass. "Come on!" He made a break for the castle, hacking into Black Gibdos before they could loose their petrifying screams. Kafei dashed after him, hurling smoke bombs at the ones that weren't in their direct path, in hopes of stalling them from pursuit. Lucius chugged the fourth green potion out of their original six and followed, casting wind magic to blow the enemies aside.

Fortunately for them, the front gate of the castle was ajar, as Link had left it in one of his previous adventures. Unfortunately, King Ikana seemed to have stepped up security and they were faced with many Black ReDeads and Black Bombachus.

"Holy Goddesses in the Sacred Realm…" Kafei muttered. Lucius raised his staff.

"Stand tall!" the mage barked. "Divine Lightning!" The lightning of judgment crashed into the hordes of foes and took out at least 60 as Link and Kafei began their hand-to-hand assault. Link performed a Hurricane Spin and cut through at least 30 enemies, his momentum deflecting the explosions from the Black Bombachu. Kafei cut many a Black ReDead asunder with his deft moves and tricked the Black Bombachu into colliding with one another or Black ReDeads. In little time, the courtyard was empty.

The trio proceeded to the entrance hall, where ten Black ReDeads awaited. Lucius blew them away with Ruby Fire and the party continued through the open door in front of them to the throne room.

"Why have you barged into my castle with your light?" a regally-dressed Stalfos said from the throne. "Do you seek to steal this jewel?" He held up the glowing, purple jewel.

"We need it for-" Link began bluntly.

"This jewel is an heirloom of this kingdom," he interrupted loudly, holding the jewel aloft to admire its beauty. "It has been stolen once, by a wind mage that crept into the stone tower and took it, but now it is back in my possession,"

"That's why we need it! We have to protect it from-" Link tried to appeal to him but was cut off.

"You think that your light can protect this jewel better than my darkness? The power of the king of Ikana?" Igus growled. "I disagree! Now, come, draw your weapons!" He looked over them at Team Shadows. "You too shall pay for trying to take this jewel!" Team Link spun to see their new opponents as Igus brought out his sword and shield.

"This is all we need," Kafei sighed.

"No time! Beware!" Lucius warned as the three leapt away from a mighty, downward swing. Igus then fired a stream of dark energy, from his mouth, at the other team, forcing them to jump aside as well. "Divine Lightning!" The lightning of judgment hurtled towards the undead king, but he hid behind his shield and the light shined everywhere but on him. When the glare faded, he laughed aloud.

"You cannot harm me with light so easily!" he rushed at Link and swung wildly at him. The hero barely deflected them with his mirror shield as Kafei threw a smoke bomb at the king. He was relatively unaffected. Lucius fired several bolts of light at him but they too were blocked.

"Take this!" Vaati hurled numerous wind spells at Igus as Ganondorf and Knil rushed him from the other sides. He blocked the spells, kicked Link away, and blocked Knil's strike before being decked by Ganondorf's Warlock Punch. His head went flying away but his body took a swing at Ganondorf, who dodged away, before fighting it out with Knil, who had to walk backwards and block from all the fierce blows. Kafei deftly dodged and flipped around the head as it attempted to bite him and breath streams of dark energy at him. Lucius fired bolts of light at it, only to have it dodge them.

"Hold it down, I can't hit it!" he shouted at Kafei.

"How do you suggest I hold it down?" the thief retaliated, wincing as the skull's teeth grazed his arm.

Igus's body continued to swing at Knil, who finally rolled around behind him and sliced him in the back. Unfortunately, it had little effect on the undead king and he kicked Knil in the face with a backwards kick, making him turn a flip and land on his free hand and feet before rushing back to the offensive as Ganondorf attacked it from the front.

"I've got it!" Vaati held the head in place with a wind barrier and Lucius summoned more bolts of light. The head took the hits and roared in outrage, breaking out of the barriers and heading back to its body. Igus was now angry. He blocked Ganondorf's Warlock Punch before giving him a roundhouse kick to the head and making him slide across the room before he could recover. He spun and blocked Knil's strike with his shield as Vaati fired a whirlwind at him and Link shot a fireball. Lucius was preparing to cast his ultimate spell again, but he had to wait for the right moment. Igus spun around, somehow repelling Knil, the fireball, and dissipating the whirlwind, before knocking Ganondorf and Kafei away again as they attempted to double-team him with a single attack. Suddenly, though, the king staggered, energy jumping all over him, as Knil's blast of light energy hit him in the back. One moment of distraction had left him wide open.

"Lucius, now!" Link shouted. The mage wasted no more time and raised his staff.

"Divine Lightning!" The lightning of judgment came again, this time striking the undead king of Ikana and burning his bones with the purity of light. He screamed and fled the room, searching for the dark solace of elsewhere, dropping the jewel as he went. Quick as a flash, they all went for it, but Kafei, being a thief, was quickest and soon had it in his hand.

"Blast!" Ganondorf shouted as Team Link gathered opposite Team Shadow as they regrouped as well.

"Well, the score seems to be tied," Vaati commented with a chuckle. "That means that there's only one thing to do,"

The clock tolled 10:00 as the teams stared each other down.

"So, _are_ you guys responsible for the new monsters lately?" Link asked. Knil humphed.

"If we were, do you think that we would have to fight them?" Ganondorf grumbled.

"Well, you and Vaati are the main living candidates for this sort of incident," Lucius pointed out.

"And your quest for the jewels raised more suspicion," Kafei added.

"Our vengeance upon you three is all that we seek, no more," Vaati replied with a mysterious smirk.

It was at that moment, at 10:05 on the fifth day, that the sun was suddenly blotted out of the sky and darkness fell upon Termina.

"What's going on?" Link looked out the high windows of the throne room.

"Let's go see," Ganondorf said, heading for the door, pointing ominously at the hero. "Our battle will have to wait, Link, but I will have it,"

"Anytime, Ganondorf," Link replied cockily as both teams headed for the roof.

It was plain to everyone that an ominous aura was in the sky to the west.

"Something is happening in Clock Town," Knil commented, looking emotionlessly at the aura of negativity in the distance.

"Could it have something to do with the unknown cause of the black monsters?" Lucius said contemplatively. Lightning flashed in the sky as the clouds overhead began to release an ominous rain.

"Whatever the cause, we must hasten there immediately," Kafei stated, already headed for the shortest way out of the castle.

So the six of them raced out of Ikana Castle, seeing more Black Gibdos rising out of the ground to waylay them. Lucius summoned the lightning of judgment and blew a path for them as they dashed to the cliff and quickly descended to the grassy area on the other side of the river.

By the time they fought through all of the Black Bombachus, the bell tolled 11:00. They stepped out onto Termina Field to see a horrible sight. Clock Town was ablaze. The gates were thrown down and monsters flowed in through the breaches.

"Anju!" Kafei yelled, taking the lead as they fought their way to the town.

"What's going on!" Link sliced through several Black Wolfos, only to be accosted by a Black Cyclops. Lucius hit it in the eye with a light bolt before Vaati launched Link at it by catching him with a whirlwind as he tried to perform a jumping spin attack. He flew the length of its body, shredding it, and it fell down with a loud thud that shook the area. Kafei jumped up on Ganondorf's fist as he charged a Warlock Punch and the Gerudo King launched him through a horde of Black chuchus.

Finally, they cut a swathe into the city and found the place in complete disarray. Guards were fighting everywhere in the streets while people ran from the burning buildings. Team Shadows charged in as four Black Cyclopes burst through the south wall and began smashing guards and buildings.

"Leave them to it!" Lucius shouted over the din as the Cyclopes began their battle with the villains.

"She's not there!" Kafei exclaimed bitterly as he emerged from the abandoned inn. He raced up the street to the Mayor's Residence, spotting a good number of guards in front of the waterways. Several Black monsters were attacking them, but were being beat off. Team Link made short work of the attackers.

"Mr. Kafei!" the senior officer in charge saluted him. "We have evacuated the citizens to the waterways, but we're experiencing a lack of manpower because the troops we sent to North Clock Town haven't reported back yet,"

"Is Anju in there?" Kafei demanded.

"Yes, the East Clock Town citizens were among the first evacuated to the Safe Zone," the officer replied. Kafei felt some relief wash over him.

"Come on, you heard him! North Clock Town!" Link announced, charging through the nearby gate.

A guard narrowly missed smashing into them as they entered the area. Black Dodongos were everywhere, at least twelve, and they were huge.

"Save the guards and send them back to the Safe Zone," Lucius said, raising his staff. "Don't bother going after all of these, they're infinite,"

"I know that!" Link replied as a couple of guards were caught by a blast of blue fire.

"Geyser Shot!" Lucius caused a tongue of high-pressure water to shoot up under the offending Black Dodongo as Kafei darted over and picked the guards up. Link jumped into the battle that two more guards were waging and blocked the huge stream of blue fire with his mirror shield.

"Restore!" Lucius healed the guards as Kafei ran by with them.

"Get out of here!" Link yelled to the guards that he had just defended. "You're order to the Safe Zone!" The guards didn't waste a second fleeing. Several screams came to their attention as six other guards were caught between four Black Dodongos and were about to be blasted.

"Divine Lightning!" the enemies were decimated. The six guards unshielded their eyes as the light faded and looked with wonder at the dead enemies.

"Get out of here!" Kafei shouted, having returned. The guards saluted and fled as more Black Dodongos came in the gate.

"That's all the guards here," Link said as the team regrouped by the portal to East Clock Town. "We should ditch now before we get barbequed,"

"Let's check out South Clock Town, just for safety's sake," Lucius suggested, heading quickly for the gateway. "Come!"

"Okay…" Link and Kafei followed.

"People of Clock Town! Why do you resist?" an eerie, female voice suddenly boomed throughout the town. "Your destruction is inevitable,"

"Where is that coming from?" Kafei looked around.

"The clock tower!" Link raced down the ramps.

"Submit to your fate, the fate that you avoided all those years ago, when the moon failed to fall," the voice continued.

"Moon? No…it couldn't be," Link and his teammates came to a stop in front of the tower and looked up. A figure appeared to be standing atop it, though it was hard to tell from their current position. Suddenly, Team Eye, Team Lon, and Team Shadows all came running over from their respective locations.

"Majora!" Rusl called up the tower. "Come down! Take what justice awaits you!"

"Majora!" the other heroes and villains, except Shad and Ashei, exclaimed, looking at him.

"Her emblem is on every one of these black monsters," Shad pointed to a fallen Black Gibdo and, sure enough, the Majora emblem was emblazoned under its chin.

"Very impressive. Most warriors wouldn't have seen that and would have just moved on after making the kill," Majora's Wrath came drifting down to land in front of them. Yet, it wasn't Majora's Wrath, the whips were gone from her arms and the face was more defined. More muscle tone and a deeper and darker power emanated from this body.

"Majora…I saw you die," Link grimaced.

"Did you?" she taunted. "I am a cursed deity, I won't die so easily! Even the Fierce Deity can't defeat me now!" She raised her hand. "Now feel the power of Majora Chaos!" Dark versions of Odolwa and Goht entered from the gate and tackled Team Lon, carrying them away into East Clock Town.

"Beast!" Ashei launched an arrow at Majora, but it bounced off of her flesh without leaving a mark.

"You are powerless!" she declared, rising up and hurtling a large blast of dark energy at the ground. All nine sprang aside, but Team Eye fell into the resulting pit as it filled rapidly with rainwater. "Now face this!" A Dark version of Gyorg fell from the sky and splashed into the water. "And you three pathetic excuses for villains,"

"What?" Ganondorf shouted indignantly.

"You too will feel my power!" she blasted them out the gate and into Termina Field.

"You won't have it your way this time or ever!" Link donned the Fierce Deity mask and transformed into an armored, white-haired version of himself, wielding a double-helix sword in his hands.

"Darkness will never purge light entirely," Kafei pulled out his knives and took a defensive position.

"Come what may, I will not yield to the likes of you!" Lucius held his staff in front of him. Majora laughed wickedly.

"Very well, if you three are so confident, then let us begin,"

Link held his blade firm as he dashed at his foe, swinging hard vertically. Majora dodged to the side, leaving afterimages, and kicked him in the face as Kafei jumped over Link's sword and tried to kick her in the head. She caught his foot and hurled him into Lucius as he tried to cast. Lucius stopped him with a shield and hurled a bolt of light as Link turned his blade and took a horizontal swing. Majora jumped up, allowing the blade and the spell to miss, the latter shattering the doors of the clock tower with a blast.

Majora cackled dementedly as she swung her arms outward, unleashing a volley of energy blasts. All three jumped out of the way as a chain of explosions detonated along the ground and Link launched himself off of the ground, flying at the evil deity. Majora dodged the diagonal strike, to the side, and Link quickly swung horizontally towards her to try to hit her, but she just dodged up. Several bolts of light struck the tower as she moved, but they missed. She laughed and began to run up the tower. Link planted his feet and followed. Kafei flipped and pursued them, not knowing the limits of his wall running ability.

Majora swiped at Link with her razor-sharp claws, chuckling as he turned his blade to deflect the attacks. Suddenly, she jumped away as Kafei caught up near the clock tower and launched himself at her.

"Shadow Flare!" she fired a mass of dark energy at Kafei and Link.

"Blast!" Kafei shouted, springing from the tower in an attempt to dodge. Lucius suddenly appeared in midair.

"Lightning!" he thrust his staff at the other spell. The bolt of light and blast of darkness met with a sonic boom and began to struggle against one another with sounds that one normally accompanied with electrical interference.

"Do you really believe you can overpower me, mage?" Majora taunted. Lucius, though sweating with effort, managed a confidant grin.

"Sure, I've done it before," he retorted cockily. Link jumped off of the tower, grabbed Kafei, boosted up to the top of the tower with the limited flight that the Fierce Diety had, dropped him, and dived at Majora, sword point-first.

She continued to clash with Lucius, their spells totally equal, and then she suddenly sensed something. Looking up, she saw Link descending at her at high velocity.

"Hmph!" she dodged his strike, but that allowed her spell to falter and she was decked in the face by Lucius's bolt of light. She spun away, backwards, through the air, holding her face, but quickly righted herself. "Not bad," she rubbed the spot where she'd been hit. She gathered a massive amount of dark energy in her hand. "Not good either!" Her massive spell came hurtling at the clock tower. Lucius quickly warped to the top, grabbed Kafei, and warped to the bottom, as the spell impacted and the upper half of the clock tower was blown asunder in a massive explosion.

"She's not fooling around…" Link exclaimed in awe. Majora cackled at the destruction she had wrought.

"And this is only the beginning, fools!" she shouted from where the top of the tower had been a minute ago. Holding out her arms, she began to scream as purple waves of negative energy flew into her from all over Termina. "Despair, sadness, anger…all that you feel, become my weapon to destroy you!"

Majora's muscle mass increased, her body became more defined, and she now wore a headdress and formal costume that was themed around Majora's Mask. Smiling with her new, purple, lips, she held the light of ultimate malice and nihilism in her pink eyes and held up her hands. "The ultimate destruction of the land!" There was a flash and a massive rock appeared from nowhere, grimacing with its glowing eyes, pointy nose, and barred teeth. The Moon had returned.

"The Moon!" Link cried in horror.

"She has revived it…" Kafei muttered, teeth barred.

"Blast it…" Lucius hissed, also looking agitated, for once.

"And now, the destruction of Termina, of all lands, is nigh!" Majora squealed in demented glee. "You only have until sunset!"

**End Team Link Story**

**And now we move on to the story where there is an almost omniscient point-of-view. We will get to see how the final battle culminates and what parts the teams get to play...oh, and there's also an epilogue to look forward to. Review and vote on your favorite team with the new poll. Who knows, you might have changed your mind, or maybe not.**


	28. Final Story Part 1

**The final battle, the big clash, the climactic finish. Everything was to prepare for this one moment. All cliches aside, I still own nothing!****

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Final Story

**Part 1**

**-4 Hours Remain-**

"Is that?" Rusl exclaimed as he, Ashei, and Shad emerged from the hole in the ground.

"Yes," Lucius replied. "Majora intends to destroy everything,"

"Well, then, we're doomed, right proper," Shad slumped to the ground and sat with his head downcast. "No one can stop this, not even the giants. We have taken their power with the jewels,"

"The jewels!" Ganondorf exclaimed as he, Knil, and Vaati came back through the south gate. "You're a blasted genius, granted not as much as I, but…"

"Get to the point," Knil said impatiently.

"I know, we can use the jewels to stop the Moon," Link deduced. "Good thinking, Ganondork,"

"Watch it, green boy!" the Gerudo King growled, clenching his fists.

"Now isn't the time for this," Vaati said. "There are only four hours until sunset,"

"We'll go see about the townspeople, yeah?" Ashei said as she yanked Shad up off of the ground. "I know that we aren't even in the same league as you guys," She punched Link's shoulder. "Give 'em the Dark World, yeah?"

"We're counting on you," Shad added.

"See you later," Rusl interjected.

"Good luck," Lucius called as they ran off.

"Okay," Knil faced Link; he had removed his mask. "Let's do this,"

Rusl slashed through several Black Gibdos as Team Eye raced through East Clock Town.

"Are you certain that this is their location?" Shad shouted as he blasted a Black Bombachu, just short of it blowing up in his face.

"Where else would they have them, yeah?" Ashei replied as she shot a Black Cyclops in the eye. "Let's just get outta here, yeah?"

"Ugh…" Romani's eyes slowly flickered open. Sitting up, a quick glance at the scenery revealed that she was in the underground waterway. People from all over town were in here, standing on the stone flooring that covered the flowing water. Many guards stood near the entrance, and supply crates were piled in arbitrary corners.

"Romani! You're up!" Anju said from next to her, pulling her into a hug. "Cremia and Malon are over with the medic. He's assessing their mental health to the best of his ability,"

"I'm sure there's no problem," Ingo grumbled, flopping down on Romani's other side. "But I suppose being safe pays to prevent being sorry," They were suddenly distracted by a ruckus at the gate.

"Stay back, this area is under quarantine!" one of the guards protested.

"You idiot, we're here to help, yeah?" a female voice argued. "Let us in or else!"

"Ashei, that's no way to incur trust," a male voice commented. Romani, Anju, and Ingo headed over to see a familiar trio at the mini-blockade, although the swordsman seemed to be hanging back with his head in his hand.

"Stoneface, Preppy, Sword Guy!" Romani called out.

"What's going on here?" Viscen came walking up from the other end of the area. "Oh, it's you…" He put a hand to his forehead. "If you want to help out with the defenses here, fine. I'll pay you if we get out of this mess,"

"I'm not sure we will," Rusl said gravely as he and his team walked in. "Majora has re-summoned the Moon,"

"T-The Moon!" Viscen repeated, what little face was visible blanching.

"Grasshopper will stop it!" Romani said assuredly. "I know he will!"

"You're right, hope is the best defense we have, right now," Malon said, walking up. "Link saved my ranch, saved Hyrule, and has done so much more that everyone always thought impossible,"

"Hope…" Cremia added from behind Malon. "Do we actually have any?"

"Sir!" a guard called, running up. "Enemies are attacking through the observatory!"

"Full defensive action!" Viscen said at once, pulling himself together. "Nothing gets through, at any cost!"

"Come, we must assist these brave men!" Shad declared, running off. Rusl and Ashei followed.

The alter-ego pulled the blue jewel and green jewel out and held them in his hands. They shimmered, despite the dampness and gloom of the area and the purple, overcast sky that was actually more ominous than the rain that had receded with the Moon's appearance. Link pulled out the red and purple jewels and held them out as well. The four glowed and floated up into the air. The six watched in awe as they whirled around them. Golden energy radiated from their flight pattern, meeting the two teams. All six floated up in the air in a burst of power. Link's tunic turned a vivid gold and the built-in armor became a shimmering silver. His boots became adorned with gold and golden greaves formed on his lower legs as his gloves became golden and elongated to protect his lower arms. His Gilded Sword became broader and began to glow as it became the Golden Sword and his Mirror Shield became the golden Mirror Shield.

Lucius's robes became a dazzling white with silver embroidery and bindings. His staff turned from aged wood to bright gold and his boots, too, became adorned with gold.

Kafei's purple and white outfit became black and silver as his boots became adorned with gold and his Gilded Knives became enchanted Gold Knives.

Ganondorf's armor turned a bright white as his tattered, red cape turned a pale green, as did his hair. His boots and gloves also became adorned with gold, and the jewel on his forehead became a shimmering diamond.

Vaati's robes turned a shimmering white with silver lining, as did his hat, and his boots, too, were adorned with gold.

Knil's tunic turned a brilliant silver as the under-armor turned gold. His boots were adorned with silver and elongated into greaves as his gloves did the same. His two-handed sword became golden with a mirror surface.

The large burst of power was astounding, and the entire town shook under the weight of it as the six floated there with golden auras around them. Suddenly, they flew up to surround Majora Calamity as she floated under the Moon.

"So, you six really believe you can stand up to the power of despair?" she cackled. "Hmph…fools…I will consume everything!"

"They just keep coming!" Rusl grunted as he parried a Black Stalfos and Ashei blasted the skeletal foe with a light arrow. By forcing the enemies to bottleneck at the base of the observatory, they were holding them off quite handily. Suddenly, there was an explosion as the staircase collapsed and many more enemies began to jump down at them.

"Blast!" Ashei shouted as they were forced to retreat at the sheer number of enemies.

"Take it!" Shad set off an explosion trap and caught the enemies in a series of explosions, but they were replaced, almost immediately. "We're in a bit of a fix, are we not?" The nerd commented.

"Charge!" several guards came rushing out to help in the close quarters melee.

"We can't hold them off down here!" Rusl shouted. "Shad, can you take us to the upper level?"

"I can try," the bookworm said noncommittally.

"Take care of things here, yeah?" Ashei said to the guards as Shad muttered some arcane words and a pillar rose from the floor to carry them to the top level.

They jumped off on arrival and engaged the many enemies that were pouring through the hole in the wall that the enemies had, surely, made.

"Oh, boy, this will be a dilly of a challenge," Shad muttered.

"What was that?" Cremia exclaimed as a crashing noise emanated from the waterway entrance. They soon heard the shouts of guards.

"They're attacking from this side, too!" a guard shouted.

"We don't have enough manpower to hold off this many!" Viscen shouted bitterly, running off to help. Romani rose and pulled out her bow.

"Romani, what are you doing?" Cremia asked, looking worried.

"You wanna help 'em, don't ya?" Talon nodded, standing. "I'll help too,"

"And, if the lazy oaf is helping, I'll have to come along to make sure he doesn't nod off," Ingo said gruffly, shouldering his pitchfork.

"But it's dangerous!" Cremia shouted, standing and putting her hands on her hips. "I won't let you!"

"Romani'll be fine!" the younger rancher girl assured her sister as she ran off.

"Talon!" Cremia yelled, hoping to appeal to the older man, but he and Ingo were already following.

"They'll be fine," Malon reassured her. "My dad never lost a fight," Cremia remained inconsolable.

"Die, miserable monsters!" Viscen shouted as he deftly cut through several enemies with his gilded spear. A dozen more were already on him, though. He continued his swift, but effective moves, but was getting overwhelmed, as were the rest of the unit. Suddenly, though, a volley of arrows decimated the foes. Talon raced by and clubbed a Black Wolfos back into its mates as Ingo slashed a Black Stalfos across the face, taking off its head, before smacking the body with the butt of his implement and sending it staggering, only to be finished by a light arrow. "What are you doing out here?" Viscen yelled, blocking a Black Stalfos' sword and then batting the blade aside before cutting it asunder with a downward slice.

"Thought ya could use some help, Captain," Talon replied, grabbing two Black Wolfos, slamming their heads together with lethal force, and then throwing them hard against a wall as more charged at him.

"You're civilians! Return to the Safe Zone at once!" Viscen insisted as a dozen Black Gibdos came at him. He slashed aside about six, but the others quickly latched onto him and started strangling and biting him.

"Captain Guy!" Romani exclaimed, sniping each Black Gibdo with a light arrow in quick succession. Viscen fell to the ground upon being freed, bleeding and breathing hard.

"Captain!" one of the remaining guards ran over to him.

"Get 'im outta here!" Talon shouted. "We'll take these!" The guard nodded and hefted Viscen into his arms, making a mad dash for the waterways. A couple of Black Stalfos attempted to waylay them, but Ingo leapt in and made short work of them. Suddenly, the whole area shook as a bright flash of light occurred from the direction of where the clock tower once stood.

"What was that?" Romani exclaimed.

The whole area shook as the guard brought Viscen in to be treated. The medic ran quickly over, looking close to tears as he pulled out one of their few remaining red potions.

"Captain! How could this happen?"

"We're doomed, aren't we?" Tim sniffed, grabbing onto Anju's dress and sobbing loudly. The other Bombers weren't very optimistic either, if their similar actions with their own parent/guardians were any indication.

Rusl launched a hawk at a Black Dinofols as it sprang through the door, spouting flame from its maw. The hawk promptly started to claw its eyes out, making it run amok in its own ranks, torching many a Black Wolfos and Black Stalfos. Finally, a Black Dodongo killed it with a powerful swipe of its tail to stop it.

"Things aren't good, yeah?" Ashei commented grimly as she fired volley after volley into the enemy ranks. Every time a foe fell, though, another took its place.

"It would be prudent to fall back and barricade ourselves in the waterways, lest we be overwhelmed," Shad added, firing more stone shards at the nearest monsters as the area shook violently.

"Very well, retreat!" Rusl jumped back down to the waterways, nearly hurting himself in the process. Even Shad quickly followed in the heat of this battle.

Link, Knil, Ganondorf, and Kafei all sped forward at breakneck speed. Majora simply teleported to avoid them, forcing them to veer aside to prevent a collision. As she reappeared, Vaati and Lucius loosed wind and light at her, respectively, but she just batted it aside with one swing of her arm, laughing madly. Ganondorf rushed at her with a Warlock Punch as she did this, but she turned and blocked it with her hand. A massive shockwave flew from the collision point as the impact made a sonic boom, shaking the town.

"What?" the Gerudo King said angrily. Majora warped behind him and slammed him in the back, sending him careening into the ground with a crash that vibrated the area. Link and Knil were on her at once, swinging viciously, but she just dodged every lightning-fast swipe.

"Divine Storm!" Lucius and Vaati cried, putting together their Super forms' respective Double Divine Lightning and Double Whirlwind Strike. A massive hurricane appeared on the battlefield, firing forks of the lightning of judgment everywhere. Link and Knil flew clear as the combined spell converged on Majora, surrounding her with damaging wind blades and light bolts. She looked around with an annoyed look and then curled up in a ball, wrapping her arms around herself, as she was sliced at and struck multiple times with light bolts.

"Yeah! That's doing it!" Ganondorf punched the air as he arrived next to Link from the crater that he'd been in.

"She's not done yet," Knil said simply.

"How could someone take that much punishment?" Ganondorf replied in shock. The cloud of dust left by the attack was suddenly repelled by a wave of dark energy as Majora screamed.

"Impudent mortals!" she began to spin around, firing energy spheres in all directions. Link tried to hide behind his shield, but the balls curved, so several hit him anyway and sent him plummeting to the ground with smoke coming off of him. Knil, Ganondorf, and Kafei dodged around them, Kafei being able to teleport in his Super form made things a lot easier for him. Lucius and Vaati simply summoned a sphere shield around themselves and the energy balls exploded harmlessly against them.

Much of the city was getting demolished by this assault, so Kafei decided he'd better do something. Majora continued to laugh and spin, but then, suddenly, Kafei appeared out of thin air and smashed into her face with a high-velocity kick. She spun out for a short ways before stopping and flipping upright again.

"You-" she didn't get to finish as Ganondorf and Knil were suddenly upon her and attacking her with no relent. She dodged the punches and swipes expertly, much to the annoyance of the attackers.

"Hold still, blast you!" Ganondorf barked in irritation. Kafei flew back and attached his knives together with energy before hurtling them at Majora. They missed, naturally, as she saw them coming and dodged them, but he moved his hand and they came flying back, again, and again, and again. She kept dodging but her attackers weren't letting up anytime soon. Link suddenly flew back onto the scene and then Majora decided enough was enough. With a scream, she repelled them with purple waves of dark energy.

"Double Divine Lightning!" Lucius fired two lightning bolts of judgment at her as he radiated the dark energy, leaving her no time to get out of the way. Struck head-on, she screamed and light radiated from every joint. Smoking and angry, she teleported over to Lucius and smacked him across the face, sending him spiraling into Vaati. Kafei teleported in and tried to slice her, but she dodged him and gave him a round-house kick to the back of the head, sending him plummeting into the ground. Teleporting again, Majora blasted the two mages to the earth with a beam of pure darkness.

"Anti-Energy Cannon, fire!" Knil countered with a one-handed attack of his own. In his Super form, it required almost no time to charge. Majora saw it coming and dodged to the side, just barely missing it, but Ganondorf delivered a powerful Warlock Kick to her stomach before she could get her bearings. Spit flew from her mouth as she grimaced in pain. Ganondorf finished up with a blast to the face that sent her hurtling at Link. Knil flew up to him and the joined arms, holding their blades out.

"Spinning Blade Sphere!" they cried in unison, beginning a combined mid-air Hurricane Spin.

The crates that they had piled up in the entrance to the observatory shook and gave sounds of crumbling as the enemies battered at them. Team Eye and a dozen guards sat looking gravely at it.

"It won't hold much longer, I fear," Shad commented dismally.

"Well, if this is to be our end, let's make it big, yeah?" Ashei said in an attempt at wit. Rusl remained silent.

_Uli…Colin…_He didn't want to leave his family. This couldn't be the end!

The crates started to buckle, spraying shards of wood everywhere. The defenders took defensive positions.

"Get ready!" the senior officer warned.

"There's too many!" Talon shouted as the battle above rocked the town. "Romani, we gotta get back inside!"

"But…" Romani trailed off, looking at the dozens of enemies approaching. "Okay," The three hightailed back to the waterways. "Where are the guards?"

"They're fighting off enemies at the other end," Anju informed them. The cries of monsters echoed through the entrance.

"Well, we've gotta block this way up, then," Ingo declared. "If they get in, we won't be able to hold 'em on our own!"

"C'mon, help me move these crates!" Talon called. So they hefted the many supply crates into an obstructing pile in the doorway. It started shaking not long after they were done.

"They won't be stopped like this for long," Romani sighed. _Grasshopper…take care of things outside…_

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**Anyone that's played Majora's Mask will recognize the line Romani says as an almost ver bedim of her line in the game when you protect the barn from 'them'. Anyway, there's still a new poll for favorite character and it'll probably be open until I finish this story. And the usual comment about reviewing, etc.**


	29. Final Story Part 2 and Epilogue

**A happy and sad moment for us all. This is the finale of Zelda Heroes. I still own nothing!****

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**Part 2**

**-3 Hours Remain-**

"Spinning Blade Sphere!" Link and Knil cried in unison, beginning a combined mid-air Hurricane Spin as the winded Majora came flying at them. They both began to spin around at high velocity like an oscillating and pivoting blade. The fast speed of the swinging blades formed a sphere around the attackers from the light reflecting off of the swift blades. The sphere collided with Majora and she screamed in agony as she was sliced all over, purple blood spraying from the wounds with each scream. Finally, the attack ended and Link and Knil released each other's arms and separated as Ganondorf fired a Black Hole.

"No!" Majora, hurtling away from the latest assault, spun and batted all the bursts back at the Gerudo King. He flew out of the way before impact, allowing the attack to explode in the distance.

Lucius, Vaati, and Kafei reappeared at this moment, looking battered, and pulled off a triple attack.

"Glowing Whirlwind Blade!" they cried as Lucius covered Kafei in light before Vaati fired him out of a cyclone. Majora screamed and repelled the attack with purple waves that surged from her body. Kafei flipped away but soon stopped and went back upright.

"This is getting annoying," Vaati commented, panting a little, despite the Super form's gradual healing properties. Majora soared up as Link, Knil, and Ganondorf flew at her, causing them to hit each other, hard.

"Ow! Watch it!" Ganondorf growled.

"You watch it, Ganondork!" Link retorted. Knil merely rubbed at the cut in his shoulder.

"We're going to have to work together to get out of this," Lucius intervened before civil war started. "Not as a tag-team," Knil humphed.

"I assume you have a plan?" Kafei asked glumly.

"Don't I always?" Lucius replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Come on, let's show Majora who the real villains are!" Vaati exclaimed.

"Yeah, I agree with the 'villains' part replaced with 'heroes'!" Link agreed, raising an arm. Lucius raised his staff.

"Nayru's Love!" the six were immediately healed by a shimmering blue light that enveloped their bodies and remained as a protective aura.

"Come on, assorted villains and heroes! Let's rock!" Link flew off. The others followed and took up a formation.

"Trying to think your way out?" Majora taunted. "There is none!"

The crates exploded outward, sending splinters everywhere, as the monsters poured into the room.

"We stop them here!" the senior officer shouted. "We can't let them get the townspeople!" Dozens of Black Stalfos and Black Dinofols charged in, engaging the soldiers. Team Eye sprang into action, hacking and blasting the enemies.

"Freeze!" Shad encased a couple of Black Stalfos in ice as two more jumped at him, only to be distracted by Rusl's hawk. "Arise!" Two stalagmites shot up and speared the Black Stalfos and they exploded to pieces.

Ashei rolled out of the way of a torrent of fire that a Black Dinofols fired at her and hit him in the eye with an ice arrow. Unfortunately, another Black Dinofols was behind her and breathed a torrent of fire at her too.

"Blast!" she exclaimed, diving away. Luckily, a wall of stone rose up to block the flamethrower and Rusl's hawk latched onto the Black Dinofols's face and sent in running and screaming.

"Okay there, Ashei?" Shad called as he jumped out of the way of an attack and towards her as she kicked a Black Stalfos in the face and shot in the face with a light arrow.

"Never better," she replied as he activated his Burst Glyph that he had just snared a group of foes in, killing them in a series of explosions. "You?"

"Can't really complain, I suppose," he sighed. "Though this battle is somewhat of a pain,"

"Suck it up, nerd boy," Ashei replied.

Rusl carved his way through three Black Dinofols, deftly cutting through their armor, as they rushed at him, and then came to a Black Stalfos. Leaping back, he whistled to call his hawk to his arm and launched it at the foe. While it was distracted, he rolled forward, avoiding a Black Dinofols's blade, and cut the Black Stalfos in half.

"Get back!" Talon warned as the crated shuddered and creaked. "They're comin' through!" The townspeople gave murmurs and retreated a bit, but there was really no room.

"We're trapped like rats in a hole," Ingo grumbled, gripping his pitchfork.

"As long as we hold out until Grasshopper beats Majora, we'll be fine," Romani said assuredly.

"How can you be so sure?" Ingo asked with a twitch of his mustache and a raised eyebrow. Romani looked sad.

"Ingo, knock it off!" Talon snapped. The crates gave one last shudder and then exploded outward, allowing a single file of Black Stalfos to enter. Romani sniped the first one with a light arrow and Ingo killed the next one before Talon grabbed the third, minding the sword, and smashed him into the fourth. "If we keep 'em bottlenecked, they won't be able to fight back!" Talon pointed out.

"Brilliant deduction!" Ingo grunted, driving his pitchfork forward against his foe's shield. Romani fired a light arrow at its face and it disintegrated.

"What'll we do!" Tim exclaimed at all the sounds of fighting from all over and nearby.

"Just don't give up," Malon said softly, patting his head.

"I believe that Kafei will save us," Anju added. "He's never let me down before,"

_Romani…please be okay…_ Cremia thought, looking back in the direction they had retreated from.

Link and Knil joined arms and held their blades out as they rushed forward.

"This again?" Majora laughed. Vaati, Lucius, and Kafei veered off, passing by Majora in the process. "Missed!" Ganondorf rushed forward and delivered a Warlock Kick to the Spinning Blade Sphere, sending it forward at high velocities. Majora turned in time to see it and get hit again. She screamed as she was cut at least a hundred times by the super blades.

"Divine Storm!" Lucius and Vaati cried, pointing their staff and finger, respectively, at Majora. Once again, a massive hurricane engulfed the evil deity and struck her with dozens of light bolts. Kafei teleported over to Ganondorf and leapt of his arm as he charged a Warlock Punch.

"Warlock Launch!" they shouted as the thief was launched through the Divine Storm as it ended, slicing through Majora's body. She screeched in pure torture and rage.

"You…" her body shook and twitched as she drooped in exhaustion. "Impossible…I have…all the despair in Termina…as my power…" She raised her arms and screamed in outrage. The Moon started to glow with an aura of orange flame and descend faster.

**-5 Minutes Remain-**

"No!" Lucius cried.

"You will all die!" Majora shouted. Link grimaced and rushed at her, slashing through her. She grunted in shock and pain as he sped by, leaving a trail of purple blood from his blade. Knil sped through next, slashing off her other arm and leaving a trail of purple blood. Kafei teleported to point-blank range and smashed her in the face as a Double Divine Lightning struck and fried her with a scream. Vaati sliced across her body with a series of air blades before Ganondorf blasted her with a Black Hole. "I…w-will…c-consume…EVERYTH-TH-THING!" she screamed.

"Anti-Energy Cannon! Fire!" Knil unleashed a beam of pure obliteration at the dark deity, disintegrating her body completely in a mighty show of power. Majora was finally defeated.

"Yeah!" Link cheered. "We did it!" The entire continent shook as he finished.

"The Moon is coming down!" Kafei exclaimed. "Blast, we were too late!"

"We have to do _something_!" Ganondorf exclaimed. "I refuse to die like this!"

"And I don't want to miss out on all the treasures that I haven't taken yet," Vaati added.

The entire area shook. Team Eye and the guards looked around as the monsters wavered and faded.

"What's going on, yeah?" Ashei asked.

"Let's go find out," Rusl said, leading the way up to the observatory.

"I have the most abhorrent sentiment about this…" Shad muttered.

"What's happenin'?" Talon asked as the area shook.

"The monsters are gone, let's go check!" Romani exclaimed, running outside.

"Hey, wait up!" Ingo shouted as they followed her.

Team Eye stood outside the observatory staring at the spectacle that was going down in Clock Town.

"The Moon…" Rusl muttered.

"It's falling, yeah?" Ashei finished.

"Oh, I by no means thought that it would end here with you two," Shad lamented. "You two are my dearest of friends!" He latched onto Ashei and buried his face in her shoulder. She was too busy being shocked to respond.

"No…is it really…?" Romani trailed off.

"Looks like it," Ingo said with little semblance of his usual macho attitude.

"Tarnation…how could we go out this way?" Talon slumped to the ground.

_Grasshopper…_Romani thought as a tear streamed down her cheek.

"The power of the giants can stop the Moon," Knil said suddenly. "We have the power of the giants!" He flew up to the Moon and seized it with his hands.

"C'mon, guys! We gotta help!" Link flew up and grabbed the chunk of rock too.

"Might as well. We have nothing to lose," Ganondorf joined them.

"I will never allow Termina to be destroyed!" Kafei flew up and took a hold. Vaati chuckled.

"I might as well lend a hand, too," he too joined them as they pushed on the Moon. It continued to struggle to fall, but the six motley warriors held it fast.

"Push together!" Link shouted.

"Everyone's counting on us!" Lucius yelled.

"Don't let the world die!" Kafei exclaimed.

"For all the treasures…" Vatti added.

"…all the suffering that I have caused…" Knil interjected.

"And the future of the Ganondorf Empire!" Ganondorf finished.

"It's stopping!" Rusl exclaimed.

"That light!" Ashei pointed as the golden glimmer underneath the massive rock. "Link and the others must be trying to stop it, yeah?"

"I wish them Goddess-speed," Shad said, looking up at the spectacle.

"It's stopping!" Ingo exclaimed.

"Grasshopper!" Romani shouted with a smile. "Do it, Grasshopper!"

"Go, Link!" Talon added, rising and holding up his arm. "Push that thing back where it belongs!"

Lightning shot everywhere as the six pushed the Moon up. Majora's will driving it, though, it refused to quit falling.

"Release everything you have!" Lucius shouted. "Force it back into the sky!" All six glowed like a golden supernova as they fired all of their Super forms' power into Moon. Slowly, it began to ascend and, then, it rocketed back up into the heavens. Reaching orbit, it stopped, the face fading from it, and began to follow its normal path.

"It's…over…" Link muttered.

So it was, at 3:30 on the Fifth Day since the incident started, that Team Link and Team Shadows vanquished Majora and put the cursed moon back where it belonged. The people of Clock Town untied in celebration as it dawned on them what had happened. The two teams returned to South Clock Town, landing near the ruins of the clock tower as their Super forms faded away.

**Epilogue**

**Night of the Fifth Day**

"And so, I present Link, Lucius, Kafei with awards for averting the apocalypse and saving our fair city!" Mayor Dotour announced from the podium. The crowd cheered as Team Link came up to get their medals. Link scratched the back of his head bashfully as he accepted his and shook the Mayor's hand. Lucius bowed politely and shook the Mayor's hand as he accepted his award. Kafei smiled politely and shook his father's hand as he took the medal and stood with his comrades on the other side of the quickly-erected stage. "Now, I present three more awards to three unexpected heroes that, for whatever their reasons, helped defend us from certain doom! Ganondorf, Vaati, and Knil, please come forward!"

"What?" Ganondorf exclaimed from the back of the crowd. "Did I just hear right?"

"Yep," Vaati replied with a chuckle. Knil humphed.

Team Shadows came onto the stage after pushing through the murmuring crowd.

"Ah, there they are," Dotour said. Viscen, standing nearby, gripped his spear tighter.

"I don't think they'll try anything too bad right now," Link muttered to him in his cocky fashion. Dotour shook Ganondorf's large hand and handed over his medal. The Gerudo King smiled broadly in his self-important fashion and went to stand next to Team Link. Vaati took the medal and analyzed it.

"This isn't even pure gold," he whined. "Oh, well…" he shook Dotour's hand and went over to stand next to Ganondorf. Knil walked over, took the medal, and went to stand with the others. Dotour seemed unruffled by Knil's rudeness and went back to his wooden cone. "Now, we have three brave detectives that came back to help, even after the guard captain and I had offended them. Please applaud for Rusl, Ashei, and Shad, otherwise known as the Team Eye Detective Agency!" The crowd cheered as the trio came up on the stage. The loudest cheers came from the Bombers. "I hereby award them these medals and…" A guard came up with a large rupee bag. "10,000 rupees," Rusl looked shocked as he received this generous gift. "Taken from the bounty that the Black monsters left us in the streets," Team Eye, still shocked, went over to stand with the others. Dotour signaled down the applause. "It takes a lot to fight for others, even more so when you're not even trained soldiers, but ranchers that normally supply food for others. Romani, Ingo, Talon, I award you now for your bravery!" Team Lon came up on stage, looking rather embarrassed at this unexpected gesture. They received their medals and went to stand with the others. Link and Ganondorf had started a toe-stomping fight, but Lucius quickly broke it up with a threatening raise of his staff. "That concludes the awards! Now, let the festivities begin!" Several fireworks shot up and exploded above the city.

"Finally, food!" Ganondorf exclaimed, quickly eating the contents of an entire buffet table by himself, much to the befuddlement of the cooks. Unfortunately, not eating for a while reduced his ability to eat so much and he quickly went sprinting for the bushes to get rid of a fair amount of it, much to the amusement of some.

Vaati had charmed quite a few valuables out of the present women, mainly by distracting them with the charming while he took their stuff, and was relatively happy until an old lady called the guards on him.

"It was scary for a while but-" Link was cut off as Vaati and several guards literally burst through his conversation with Romani. "What was that about?" He shrugged. "Anyway, I'm glad you're okay. Sorry to worry you,"

"It's okay, Grasshopper," Romani replied. "But what'll you do now?"

"I guess I'll go over to Holodrum for a while or something," Link shrugged. "The world's my backyard, after all,"

"Oh, I see, so you're running off again…" Romani hung her head.

"Well, I get bored in one spot," Link protested. "I'd ask you to come with me, but I don't think Cremia can handle a ranch on her own with just Grog,"

"You're doing it again," Lucius said as he passed by with a plate of food.

"Stay out of this, old man!" Link shouted after him. True, Lucius was probably only a few years older than Link, but the insult stood. "Well…" he looked back to Romani. "I suppose I could hang around here for a while and ruin Kafei's life, but I have to go back to Hyrule occasionally. Zelda declare war on Termina to find me if I stay too long," he chuckled.

"Okay, fair enough," Romani smiled. "Let's go try some of that cream soup," They hardly took two steps when the Bombers tackled Link.

"We've got the hero!" Tim exclaimed.

"Help, midgets have got me!" Link flailed unenthusiastically. Romani giggled at this display.

"What are you doing here?" Knil glanced over at Ashei.

"Same thing you are," she replied. Knil looked back at the sky.

"Shouldn't you be with that nerd?" the alter ego asked, jerking his head towards said nerd as he engaged Lucius in an intellectual conversation.

"Nah, I don't like that kinda nerdy talk, yeah?" Ashei replied. Knil didn't answer.

"Chug, chug, chug!" the carpenters chanted as Ingo and Talon downed bottle after bottle of Chateau Romani.

"I drink ya unduh da tabuh, lazeh ooaf!" Ingo slurred at Talon. The portly rancher put down his tanker.

"In ya dweam ya puggeded jowk!" Talon retorted drunkenly. Cremia and Malon stood nearby, watching with distasteful expressions.

"Well, at least the Milk Bar's getting good business," Cremia sighed, trying to console herself more than anyone.

"Well, we survived the Moon again," Kafei said to Anju as they reclined against one another on the roof of the Stock Pot Inn.

"Yes, I knew that you'd save us," Anju replied. "The man I love can do anything," Kafei blushed slightly.

"Thanks for having such faith in me," he said with a smile. They shared a chuckle before kissing and then laying back to look at the stars, or what stars they could see with all the lights of the party below.

"Hands off the buffet, green boy!" Ganondorf growled as he and Link reached for the cream soup.

"You already ate your share and puked it out, tubby!" Link rejoined.

"WHAT? Why you little…" Vaati suddenly appeared, having ditched the guards, and put a hand to Ganondorf.

"This is a party, try to keep from combat until it's over," the wind mage said. Ganondorf crossed his arms with a huff and went to find something else to eat.

"So why did you guys help out, anyway?" Romani asked Vaati as he took a roll.

"Well, we can't fulfill our designs if there's no world, you understand," he replied nonchalantly.

"Yeah," Ganondorf interjected, coming back over with a roasted cow leg in hand and biting a chunk off. "And don't think that I'm your friend now, either, green boy!" he pointed the leg at Link, spraying him with a couple of bits of meat. "I'm still gonna build the Ganondorf Empire!"

"Good luck with that," Link said dismissively. The Gerudo King growled and stalked off.

"Hey, nerd boy," Ashei came up to Shad. "Seen Rusl?"

"I believe that he was speaking with the Mayor," Shad replied. "Oh, there he is now,"

"I never expected to get such a huge reward," Rusl exclaimed as he got close to them.

"Well, they had a bunch of extra rupees laying around, yeah?" Ashei pointed out. "Don't read too much into it,"

"Well, be thankful for lemons and apples alike, I always say," Shad added.

"Meaning?" Ashei raised an eyebrow.

"Bad or good intentions aside, be pleased you received it," Shad clarified.

"Stout, Lanky…why'd you go and do this to yourself?" Romani sighed as she looked at the two comatose drunks that were passed out by the milk table, covered in milk and sporting huge milk mustaches.

"It was a tie…" Malon muttered, still impressed.

"Hey, Romani, Cremia!" Mr. Barten, the bartender, said as he mopped up the table and prepared more mugs for those who wanted to buy some.

"Hi!" Romani replied before going over to Malon. "I guess you, Stout, and Lanky will be going back to Hyrule soon, huh?"

"Well, we have to run our own ranch," Malon replied. "But we'll write, I promise!"

"Hook-handed horse…" Talon muttered in his sleep.

"What?" Romani gave him a look.

"You don't want to know," Malon replied, recognizing the allusion to one of his 'scary' stories.

"I guess this is it," Vaati said as he and Ganondorf joined Knil in the corner. "It's been nice working with you, but we're all enemies with opposing objectives,"

"I guess it was tolerable," Ganondorf admitted. "I'll go easy on you in the next fight, maybe," he grinned sinisterly. Knil turned and began to leave.

"Good-bye, Knil!" Vaati called with a childish giggle. Knil humphed and gave a backwards wave as he walked off. "I'm off!" Vaati teleported away. Ganondorf reveled in the aloneness that he'd gotten unaccustomed to in the last five days before flying out of town as well, shoving the feeling aside.

"Knil!" Link called, running over to him as he walked out the south gate. "Are you sure you don't wanna join the good guys?" Knil humphed.

"Thanks but no thanks, green boy," he muttered. "I do only as I decide," With that, he disappeared into the gloom covering Termina Field.

"So he didn't go for it, huh?" Lucius said as Link returned to him.

"Nope," Link replied with a smile. "But I didn't really expect him to,"

"Well, he'll be around, don't worry," the mage replied. "So you're staying at the ranch for a while?" Link shrugged.

"Might as well. Maybe it's time I started doing less drifting and more relationship-building," he chuckled. "Don't get me wrong, I love travel, but I'll try staying in one spot longer," Lucius laughed. "What's so funny?" Link demanded, perhaps playfully.

"I think you learned something," the mage replied. Link crossed his arms and pouted.

"Well, meanie, what're _you_ gonna do?" the hero asked.

"I was thinking of becoming a teacher," Lucius replied. Link burst out laughing.

"I can see that!" he said. Lucius thonked him on the head. "No, really," Link rubbed his head. "No one'll shirk their homework with your staff being the punishment," He looked around. "What about Kafei?"

"I think he wants to stay here," Lucius replied. "I think we should let him, he deserves it,"

"Yeah," Link nodded. "So it looks like Team Link is all but disbanded,"

"No…not disbanded," Lucius shook his head. "Just think of this as a vacation,"

The party continued on into the night, as the people of Termina rejoiced in their escape from destruction. Many more tales would come from the lives of the four teams that worked together to save the land, but those stories will have to wait for another time.

_**Fin**_

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**And that is that. The favorite team poll will remain up for a little while, but I've got another poll that I wanna put up so the stragglers better act fast. Remember to review and thanks for reading my little mash-up of Sonic Heroes and Zelda. And look out for the new poll. It's about the sequel.**


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